From Here
by Emotional-Hikari
Summary: 02/24/11 UPDATE! -Sequel to "Come What Be"- Seven years have passed since that fateful day; what has become of him? He has probably found someone better to be with. I broke his heart; he's probably forgotten me by now...
1. Chapter 1

Hi all!

This is out a little earlier then I was expecting, but I guess it can't be helped… sooooo – here it is! The awaited, and expected sequel to "Come What Be"!

You may want to read that one first to understand what is going on, as we're jumping right into things…

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

**Mature Content Warning:** This fiction may and will contain situations of the sexual/intimate kind as it progresses, and mostly between two guys; if this bothers you there's a lovely invention called "backspace" – use it wisely. :p

Okay – enough of my dumb ranting, onwards to the story!

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**Chapter One**

The man had been barely talking for thirty minutes as he realised this meeting was just a waste of time. The middle-aged business man folded his hands in anticipation, an expecting grin on his face as he gazed eagerly at the man sitting behind the desk.

'I must say – it is truly an honour that you've granted me your time, Mr Malfoy; I assure you, a deal with my company will be most beneficial to you in the future.'

'I have no interest in being partners with someone such as yourself.' The blond spat out sharply, his back stiff against the black leather seat as he gazed blankly at the balding man standing in front of him; the grin on his face dropped a little, holding his hands out as if in an offering.

'Surely you don't quite understand, sir – my company has a respectable standing in our grand community; I'm sure we can be of some use to you.'

'I'm quite aware of this – "reputation", as you put it, and it is hardly worth respecting.' He picked up a thick, manila folder up from his desk, holding it out to business man standing in front of him. The man gulped before hesitantly taking the folder from the blond and slowly unraveled the tie and lifted the flap.

'Prostitute trading, illegal hoarding of weaponry, political bribery – and that's only scratching the surface of it.' The man only gazed with wide eyes at the evidence in his hands, unable to utter a single word to the young heir sitting behind the desk. As expected from the son of Lucius Malfoy – Draco Malfoy was vicious and merciless as his father, but in his own way. The balding man hastily shoved the documents and photos back into the folder, quickly tucking it under his arm as he gave a slight bow to the blond, then speed walked towards the door of the office. He knew what he held in his possession was just a mere copy, and only contained half of the things he did in the dark; if the authorities or the public got word of even that much, he'd been thrown into prison for life, or worse.

Harden grey eyes watched the retreating back, waiting expectantly for the click of the large, wooden doors as his client left. Draco let out a sigh of relief, slumping back against the back of his seat as he relaxed his face; since when did it become so easy wearing that mask. Another soft escaped him as he gazed down at his hands, his eyes narrowing at the golden band encircling his finger; he growled before reaching his other hand to yank it off, forcefully jerking one of the drawers of his desk open and tossed it in carelessly. He buried his face in his hands, letting out a silent scream of frustration; he had been married to Anabel for seven years, but he still couldn't stop the guilt of keeping her from someone she truly loved. Or perhaps it was the pain that still lingered in his heart from the day that he broke Ron's.

The deep static buzz of the intercom shattered the silent air; Draco sighed as he lifted his head up, reaching a weary hand for the button as he answered it.

'What is it?' He asked dully; not exactly his most dignified reaction, but it was not as if he had any more business clients left to meet with for today.

'Um, s-sorry to bother you, Mr Malfoy, but um – there's a woman here who insists on seeing you. A Mrs. Macias?' The young secretary answered nervously; Draco's mood instantly lifted.

'Please send her in.'

'Ah? But sir –'

'I said – send her in.' He commanded roughly; the young woman squeaked a little, before giving him a small "Yes sir" and quickly hung up the receiver. Draco flinched slightly at the click – he'd have to apologise to her later; she was still new, so of course she wouldn't have known who Mrs Macias was and that no matter what circumstances, she was always allowed into his office.

The doors clicked open, pale grey eyes instantly glancing towards them as they opened inwards, a woman with sunny-yellow skin, and dark black hair walking in with a slight grin on her face.

'Rough day, I assumed? You scared the poor girl, you know.'

'I'll be sure to make it up to her before she goes home tonight.' Draco replied; the woman laughed softly as she closed the doors behind her, walking further into the office space. Draco stood up from his desk, gesturing towards the sectional, comfy seats off the right side of the room.

'You should sit down; I seem to recall your doctor saying you have to stay off your feet as often as possible.' He nagged; the woman scoffed as she waved a hand in the air.

'You're just as bad as Roberto.'

'There's nothing wrong with making sure you have a healthy pregnancy, Chanya.' Chanya only smiled at him, gently running her hands over her swollen belly; she was only six months pregnant, but the fact it had taken her and her husband years of trying to conceive left a bit of worry when it finally happened. While the constant trips to the doctor were a pain, and being treated as if she were two years old was annoying, Chanya wanted to be sure just as much as her husband and Draco that nothing would happen to this child. The dark hair woman sighed and shook her head, but nonetheless moved to sit down on the seats the blond had motioned to. Draco smiled softly as he helped her sit down, before taking a seat next to her.

He was glad to have her back in his life, and not as a "servant" but a friend – or almost a sister to him, now that he thought about it. The day she had left – the day he broke Ron's heart and drove him away – he worried about her, almost to the point he had been tempted to find her, but he knew she wouldn't allow it. Filled with so many emotions, most of which she was unused to feeling or knowing, wandering alone out in a world where the emotional-unstable were not always welcomed or helped – he thought she was going to be overwhelmed, but some kind fate had shined that day for her. She met Roberto (who she was currently happily married to), who held his hand out to her, talked her through her emotions and learn how to feel again.

'So – how are things back at the mansion?' Chanya asked, holding her hands over her belly, feeling the small movements of the baby inside of her. Draco sighed as he slumped forward in his seat, resting his head against the back of the chair.

'Same as they've always been – mother still checks on me once a while; you'd think a mother would let her thirty-two year old son go, but not this woman.' He complained loudly, gently banging the back of his head against the seat; Chanya chuckled as she reached a hand out to muss his silver hair. It had gotten a little coarser in recent years, but it was still smooth to the touch; his fore line had receded a little, but she blamed that on stress. The two moved on to other subjects of talk, Chanya relaying to him the "commoner's news", while Draco poked fun at the "hot topics" or gossips going around in the "high society". On occasions, he reached over carefully to place a tender hand over Chanya's baby belly, feeling the small life shifting around inside her. Dark, round eyes seemed to notice that his left hand seemed unusually bare.

'You – you're not wearing your ring.'

'Would you if you were forced to marry someone who you stole from their lover?' He muttered bitterly, glaring down at his hand even the wedding band was still sitting at the bottom of the desk drawer. Chanya reached her arm around his head, gently pulling him towards her shoulder as she combed her fingers through his hair. Draco let her, slowly letting his eyes fall shut to the feel of her touch; he couldn't help but think to himself that Chanya was definitely going to be a great mother.

'… Find him…' Draco startled a little, opening his eyes at the sudden words, before tilting his gaze up to her.

'W-what?' Dark eyes turned to him with a serious look; the petting on his hair suddenly stopped.

'Draco – just find Ron already.' She expanded; dull grey eyes only looked at her sadly, Draco pulling away from her embrace as he shifted to the side, avoiding her eyes. Chanya kept staring at him sternly; she didn't care what may come of this, but she knew one thing that was absolutely sure – Draco still loved Ron. Even if the redhead had managed to move on and find his happiness else where, she wanted Draco to find, if not to confirm, that the man was indeed doing well since that day seven years ago.

'You miss him, I know you do! Even if it's just pure curiosity to see if he's moved on, find him!'

'I can't – there's no way I can face him after what I did to him,' Draco stood up from the chair, walking towards the large, full scale glass windows that lined the wall behind his desk. 'Besides – he's probably found a better man to be with.'

'Draco – just find him already – and at least tell him the truth! He deserves to know that much at least.' Chanya pleaded softly; she hadn't really thought about what Draco her told when she had asked why all those years ago, but as she learned to control her emotions – as she began to understand her heart again – she could see Draco was only trying to protect the redhead; however she still believed that the blond had been wrong to lie the way he did. Draco stared down at the street below, the people looking as tiny as ants scurrying about their daily lives past this grand building standing above them. He wondered to himself how many times have Ron _might_ have passed by without notice, if ever he even bothered to come near this place.

He jumped slightly at the hand on his shoulder, jerking his head towards the older woman standing behind him, a firm, tender look on her face. Draco only sighed, as he shook his head and faced away from her; Chanya sighed softly, running her hand through his hair one last time, before giving him a family kiss on the cheek.

'I'll come by again soon.'

'Do you – want me to take you home, Chanya?' Draco quickly asked as he spun around to face her; the dark haired woman only smiled, waving a causal hand explaining that Roberto should be here soon to pick her up. Draco nodded, wishing her a quick goodbye as she headed towards the doors; Chanya gave one last look over her shoulder at the man staring blankly out the window. She couldn't stand to see him live in misery for the rest of his life, but it seemed that there was nothing left for him to have happiness. She reached a hand quickly to wipe away at the tears threatening to spill; she blamed it on the hormones and the pregnancy before pacing slowly out of the office, the doors shutting behind her with a soft click.

Draco didn't move away from the window even after he heard the large wooden doors click shut behind the woman; he gazed down at the street below for several more minutes before sighing and turned to face away from the window. He slumped ungracefully into his seat, the soft leather squeaking slightly as he closed his eyes; after a bit of thought, he opened them again, reaching for the first drawer of his desk. Instead of reaching for the ring (which had bounced to the back), his hand wandered over a small picture frame, carefully pulling it out as he gazed at the image with a sad smile. It was a photo of him and Ron back when they first started dating when they were teenagers; it was their first "official" date, and of course Ron wanted a momentum of it. The blond laughed silently to himself as he remembered how the redhead had dragged him into the photo booth unexpectedly, thus the rather surprised expression on Draco's face.

He ran his fingers softly over the glass of the frame, lightly tracing the outline of Ron's face in the photo; he barely remembered his touch – the tender scent of the redhead, or the feel of his breath against his ear as sweet words were whispered against it. Draco put the frame down on the desk, leaning back in his chair as he put a hand over his face to cover the tears forming in the corner of his eyes.

Part of him desperately wanted to seek out Ron, as Chanya said, if only to find out if he was happy again; he had to wonder if the redhead found another man, or perhaps he got back with Cedric Diggory. From what little he heard about them, they had seemed to be a good match. However at the same time, Draco was too ashamed to face the redhead; after countless proclamations of love, and the promise of being together forever, he had crushed it all and tore Ron to pieces in way he knew would never fully heal. He took in a deep breath, before swing his chair around to face out towards the landscape below the building, small tears streaking down his face; he really had to wonder what became of the other man now.

**-8-**

The little girl came bounding out of her room, her long, straight pink-blond hair bouncing behind her each step. She came to a jumping halt infront of the man sitting on the couch, a book in his hands and a cup of warm tea resting on the coffee table infront of him. Ron looked up to the girl with a slight smile, seeing her bouncing on the spot; he had to force himself not to laugh at the behavior.

'Are we all finished then?' She nodded her head vigorously.

'I did all my chores, like you asked! I picked up my toys, I washed my face and brushed my teeth!' Ron put the book down face opened on the seat, reaching to pull the reading glasses off his nose and set them down on the table.

'Hands front.' She eagerly held her hands out, Ron gently taking them with his as he inspected their cleanliness; next he tapped her chin lightly, the girl opening her mouth as the strong flavor of the peppermint toothpaste mingled with her breath. He gave her a nod of approval, the little girl bouncing in place as she gazed at him with a huge grin.

'See – I did everything, now can I stay up late?' Ron couldn't stop himself from chuckling, before nodding his head.

'All right, you can stay up,' she was about to squeal, when the redhead held his hand up. 'You can stay up on _Friday_ night.' The bouncing instantly stopped, the smile dropping from her face before turning into a full pout, arms crossed over her chest.

'But you promised! You said if I did all my chores, I could stay up late!' She huffed; Ron shook his head, standing up to his feet as he patted her head.

'Yes, I did say that – but I never said you could stay up tonight.' She pouted even more, and Ron had to bite his tongue to keep from chuckling outloud at the adorable expression.

'That's not fair, daddy!'

'I'm a parent – I'm not supposed to be fair. Now come on, time to get your rear to bed.'

'Fine! But I want _two_ bedtime stories then!' She demanded; Ron nodded his head as he ushered her towards her room. Aidyn uncrossed her arms, before turning around and sulked across the living room towards her bedroom door; he couldn't help but snicker a little as she stalked off, but there was also a sharp tug at his chest. She was a lot like her father in personality, despite that they've never met; although everyone's been saying she looks more like Ron, the redhead could see it – she had a lot of quarks that Ron saw in Draco that no one else did.

Ron sighed as he quickly shoved away thoughts of a certain fair-haired man and followed in after his daughter into her room. Aidyn had just about climbed under her covers, reaching over to grab the stuffed animal of a dragon from the side of her bed, hugging it close to her chest. The redhead smiled, before reaching for a story book from the bookshelf resting against the wall and walked over to her bed. He sat down next to her on the edge, leaning against the headboard; Aidyn instantly snuggled up to her father, resting her head against his chest. Ron reached his arm around her and held the book open on his lap.

'So – what kind of stories do you want to hear tonight, princess?'

'I wanna hear the one of the Goose-Girl and Frog Prince.' She chirped cheerfully; Ron nodded his head as he flipped through the pages till he found the first story, which was the Frog Prince. Aidyn snuggled closer to him as he began reading the words to her, struggling to stay awake long enough to at least hear the beginning of the second story, but her eyes were already beginning to droop at the sudden wave of tiredness that overtook her.

Ron had barely started the first sentence of the second story when he glanced down at the little girl sound asleep against him. He smiled tenderly, letting out a soft sigh, before closing up the book setting it aside on the bed side drawer. He carefully laid Aidyn back against her pillow, brushing aside silky soft, strawberry blond bangs, before leaning in to kiss her lovingly on the forehead.

'Good night, sweetie.' She murmured in her sleep, shifting a little as she hugged the stuffed dragon tighter; Ron was about to straighten up before his eyes caught on the object still resting around his daughter's neck. He let out a sigh, before carefully reaching around her neck for the clasp, quietly and slowly unhooking it and picked the pendent off her chest. Starlight blue eyes gazed at it momentarily with slight fondness, before a bitter scowl came to his face, closing his fingers around it and placed it silently on the drawer; it was the silver pendent Draco had given to him from one of the best and only Christmases they had ever spent together. He picked the book off the surface and neatly shoved it back to its place on the bookshelf and headed towards the door; Ron gave one last glance over his shoulder at his daughter, before reaching a hand to switch the light off, only the milky soft glow of the tiny night lamp illuminating the small corner by her bed.

He walked back towards the sofa after closing her door with a soft click, marking the page of his book before reaching out for the cup of the half-finished tea to dump the remains into the kitchen sink. He gave it a brief rinse before leaving it in the sink – he could wash it in the morning. Taking one last look around the area to make sure everything was off, Ron headed towards another door that was nearby Aidyn's, turning the handle as he entered into his own room. The silence was almost overwhelming, but he swallowed back the aching pain and shut his thoughts away at the emptiness of the room – he was used to this, coming back to a room where no one would be waiting for him. Walking over to the dresser, he placed the closed book on top of it, before pulling out the drawers to shift through for his pyjamas. The redhead paused for a moment, holding the pieces of clothing in his hands as he glanced at his reflection in the vanity mirror resting on top. He growled at the miserable looking face staring back at him, shoving the drawer shut with hard push and stalked away from the glass, stopping to change into his night wear and set his day clothing aside to be washed later.

The bed springs creaked slightly as he collapsed on to the mattress, staring at the carpeted floor for the longest while; he gave his pendent to Aidyn as a gift to show how much she meant to him. She was the one thing Ron had thought would never be his, but somehow gained – she was his flesh and blood, a creation he had made and bared with someone he had loved. A small tear threatened to escape him, at which he quickly wiped away with his hand; Aidyn's birth should've been the happiest moment in his life, but all he felt was the pain double at the fact that just moments before finding out, the person who helped in creating her, tore his heart apart and threw the pieces to the ground in front of him.

The tears came before he could stop them; he threw out every material possession that reminded him of the blond, except for that pendent. He reasoned that it was too beautifully made to just be simply tossed aside like trash, that it would've been a shame to let fine craftsmanship be treated like junk – but perhaps the real reason was he just simply couldn't let it go. Draco had poured his heart into that piece of silver, and it was that part Ron was still clinging desperately too – the part that _had_ truly loved him seven years ago.

He jerked the covers aside and quickly climbed under them as he willed the tears to stop; he didn't need the other man. Ron had been doing fine on his own, he had his family and his friends who had been behind him this entire time even after finding out he was with Aidyn. He buried his face into his pillow, still trying to force the tears to stop – he was better off without him, he didn't _need_ him, and Ron certainly still didn't love Draco Malfoy.

**Chapter One**


	2. Chapter 2

Sorry this took so long – I was actually thinking of rewriting this chapter, but I guess it turned out all right. XD

Enjoy

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

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-- **Chapter Two** --

He tapped the side of his head impatiently; he had checked the parlor room, the kitchen and pantry, he had checked the main hall and even the reading room yet he still couldn't find him. Draco crossed his arms as he growled at himself; he never should've agreed to this game, but at least the restriction was to the first floor only of the mansion. He glanced down at his wrist watch, seeing he only had ten minutes left before curfew. With that thought in mind, the blond headed back out to the main hall, scratching his head as he tried to think of what other places he could've missed.

A tiny flicker of movement caught the corner of his eyes; sharp, pale grey eyes turned to the curtains just on the other side of the room. Draco stared at them for a moment, before a slight grin came to his face, quietly walking over to the large, silken drapes.

'Gracious, I've search this whole floor and I still can't find him.' He proclaimed rather loudly as he approached closer to the curtains; he heard the unmistakable sound of a childish snicker poorly muffled from behind them, the grin on his face widening.

'Oh, and time is almost up; dear me – mummy's going to have my hide for this.' The snickering continued, the surface of the hanging material fluttering just a little as Draco stood to a stop infront of them. He remained still, silently whistling to himself, before he reached around the curtain and tackled the small dark-haired boy hiding behind it, the little boy letting out a tiny squeak as Draco picked him up in his arms.

'Gotcha!' The boy squealed as he squirmed in Draco's arms, before finally calming himself down as he stared up at the blond with a full, long pout. Draco only grinned down smugly at him, mussing his hair.

'No fair – this was my best hiding spot too!' The little boy complained; Draco only raised an eye brow at him, before hoisting him up in his arms and began heading up the stairs.

'Uh-huh, whatever you say, sport. Now, a deal's a deal – I found you, so it's time for bed.'

'But – but you said – you said there wasn't much time left!'

'I lied – there was nine minutes and forty-six seconds left.' Hadrian frowned, before he started kicking his legs slightly, gently whacking Draco on the shoulder with his tiny hands as he began complaining and whining.

'No! I'm not sleepy! I don't wanna go to bed!' The blond ignored him as he carried him up the stairs; this stubbornness came from his father. He knew the minute Hadrian set his head down on the pillow, he'd be asleep in less then a minute. He turned down the west wing of the mansion, stopping to open the third door down and stepped into the large and over-lavished bedroom that in his opinion was just far too elegant for a child to be sleeping in. He gently threw the complaining boy on the feathery soft mattress, Hadrian bouncing a little, before he sat himself up, crossing his legs. A sulky pout came to the boy's face as he stared down at his hands.

'… I hate this bed…' Draco sighed sympathetically as he sat on the edge, tenderly patting the thick brown hair on his head.

'I know, sport; your uncle isn't too fond of his own bed either.'

'I wanna sleep in my own bed.' Hadrian sulked; Draco gave him a tender kiss on the forehead, before tugging at the covers and motioned for him to climb under. Hadrian whined a little, but crawled underneath the fine silk and Egyptian cotton that made up his sheets, lying back as the blond tucked him in.

'When mummy and daddy come back, they'll take you back to your own bed, but you need to be asleep first or I'm going to get my hide skinned.' Draco explained light-heartedly, making the small child laugh. A smile spread across his face, a pale slender hand reaching out to brush aside shaggy brown bangs from the small round face. Hadrian was slightly tanner then either Anabel or himself, but they were able to pass it off; his eyes had a tint of green, but the grey in them was enough to be able to pass off as Draco's. Hadrian smiled up at him with a wide grin, showing off perfectly straight, cream color teeth; he had Jason's winning smile, and Draco always teased that he was going to grow up to be a lady-killer someday.

'Uncle Draco – how come you don't go out like mummy and daddy do?' The question caught him by surprised, sharp grey eyes staring down at the curious little face gazing up at him; Draco smiled sadly at him as he gently patted the sheets.

'I'm afraid – your uncle Draco doesn't have someone to go out with like mummy and daddy do.'

'Aww – how come? Did something happen to them?' A slender hand mussed with the messy, fly-away bangs covering Hadrian's face, before Draco stood up to his feet, leaning over carefully to touch his forehead to the little boy's as he whispered good night to him.

'It's a long story, Hadrian, and very complicated. Perhaps when you're older, I'll tell you.'

'… Good night, uncle Draco.' Draco smiled down at the small boy, giving him one last pat as he watched him fight sleep, green tinted grey eyes struggling against the sudden tiredness that was overtaking him. He finally gave in to sleep, Hadrian's head slowly nodding off to the side as he began to doze off; the blond watched him a moment longer before finally moving away from the bed, heading to the door as he flipped the light switch off, leaving the hallway light the only source of guidance. He left the door slightly ajar to allow the light to seep in, before trekking down towards his own room at the other end of the hall. He paused with his hand on the polished, silver door handle, gazing blankly at the dark wood as his mind thought about the question the little six-old-year had asked him. It was just a simple innocent question, but Draco couldn't help the bitterness and loathing he directed at himself rise; he quickly shoved those thoughts away pushing down roughly on the fine made handle and stepped into his room. He had tried to tone it down as much as possible, but his mother wouldn't allow him to replace all the fine, lush drapery with simple, hand-sewed curtains, or exchange the elegantly hand-carved four-poster bed with a simple single production bed.

He let out a sigh at the cold air that greeted him, as he eased the door shut behind him, preventing any sort of light from seeping into his room. He did not want to see it, and most often times sat alone in the dark, or with only the night shade by his bedside on, should he felt like reading. He walked over towards the single window on the other side of the room, gazing down into the large and splendid garden that prided the back of the mansion. There, his eyes wandered to the small quarters that sat nestled among the high hedges and trees surrounding it, making it almost invisible; the corners of his mouth twitch to a barely there smile. He'd be lying if he said that small house was simply just the gardener's quarters; it was more like a small cottage then anything else and it was there that Anabel spent most of her time with her family.

He tore his eyes away from the window, sullenly making his way over to the bed as he sank down onto the extra soft mattress. Just because he couldn't be happy didn't mean he wanted to stop Anabel from having a tiny bit of happiness; when Jason had been healed enough to leave the hospital, Draco had offered him to work as their gardener (secretly of course), and even opted to changing his name and background for safety. The dark haired man had been hesitate at first, but soon quickly jumped at the offer the first chance he got; however Draco didn't stop there for them. He had that small house built solely for Anabel and Jason to be able to spend time together; the lock had been specially made and was near impossible to break, and only three people had a key – one which included himself.

He felt his mood lift a little knowing that he had lend a hand in Jason and Anabel having Hadrian, and while he was not blood-related to the boy, he loved him just as much as if he were. A soft, sad sigh escaped pale pink lips, sullen grey eyes turning to stare at the empty bed he sat on; he hadn't realised it before – all the subtle hints, the radiating warmth he felt every time the other had talked about children – Ron had wanted a family with him. Draco hadn't given it much thought back then simply because he had hated kids; he had let the signs and subtle hopes the redhead had put out to him go unnoticed – or perhaps he had noticed and just wouldn't admit it.

He had been nervous when they found out Anabel was pregnant, and even though he knew it wasn't his child, he knew they'd have to put up a front to the public, making it seems like Hadrian was his son to keep him safe. Draco let a bitter smile play across his face; he expected the worse of everything that came with a child and had been right – what he hadn't expected was the joyful side that also came along with a child. Seeing him take his steps, hearing his first word, or seeing the smile lit up his face at even the simplest things. Draco ran his hand along the empty space of the bed, before stopping his thoughts from wondering; if he thought anymore about having Ron sleeping curled up next to him, he would only wake up feeling even more alone the usual in the morning. Letting a sigh, he laid down to curl up on his side, trying to push out the warm, tempting thoughts of his ex-lover from his mind, gazing blankly at the dark, cold wall across from him.

**-8-**

The sun was shining graciously on the day ahead of itself, this past August week had been bleak as the foreboding of fall was drawing ever closer to them; it seemed today the weather was being generous, celebrating along with the small, family party going on in the small cozy yard at the back of the Weasley's house.

Molly was inside the kitchen preparing a few last minute surprises, her youngest daughter, Ginny and her daughter-in-law, Fleur, giving her a hand as they maneuvered around the tiny area. Outside in the yard, sat three tables placed together which housed drinks and finger food, an assortment of presents stacked near it waiting to be opened. Not far from them, the rest of the family was found, playing around in the fresh grass, the kids fooling around and chasing it each other, while the adults either monitored them or joined in their fun till their breathe ran out.

Ron sat wistfully on the bench that rested just outside the wall of the house, watching his daughter play rather smugly as she bossed her cousins around; he thought about calling her off for it, but it was her birthday today, so he figured one day of lecture-free was all right. He was about take a sip from his fruit juice when a hand slapped him playfully on the shoulder, causing him to jolt a little; he glared up slightly at the offender, the older redhead only grinned and waved playfully at him.

'Pleasant as always, I see.'

'I could've very well choked on my drink, Fred.'

'Ah, still can't tell us apart – Fred's inside.' Ron only snorted as his brother took a seat next time, lifting the rim of the plastic cup to his lips.

'Don't shit me – I know it's you, Fred.'

'Tsk, tsk – such language; I should hope you don't talk like that infront of your daughter.' He teased; Ron only nudged him back in the side before gesturing out to the bright haired birthday girl bouncing her way over to them.

'We'll official know who you are once Aidyn gets here.' The twin looked up to the girl bounding towards him, her arms open wide and a huge smile on her face, as he waited for the expected pounce.

'Hey – how's my favorite little niece today?'

'Uncle Fred!' Aidyn literally jumped at Fred as she hugged him tight around the neck; Fred squeezed her around her waist, before setting her down on the ground as he gently pushed her away, ruffling the hair on her head.

'No, no – uncle Fred is still inside the house; I'm your uncle George, remember?' He teased, but Aidyn only pouted at him, poking at his nose.

'Nuuuh! I know your uncle Fred! I just know it!' Fred laughed before gently taking hold of her head and lightly bumping his forehead against hers.

'Aw, can't fool you, can we?' Ron only rolled his eyes as the little girl shook her head vigorously, Fred laughing at her as he patted her head.

'All right – why don't you head on in and see your other uncle; he's got something for you.' Aidyn blinked at him curiously before racing off to the back door leading inside; Ron looked at him rather suspiciously, Fred promptly choosing to ignore that look as he watched his niece disappear behind the screen door. The moments passed between them in silence aside from the laughter coming from the rest of the family, before Ron's curiosity got the better of him.

'Just what did you get her?' He finally asked, glaring at his older brother suspiciously; Fred waved a causally hand at him, flashing him a failed attempted at an innocent smile.

'It's just her birthday present – reason why we were a little late coming here; had to pick it up along the way.' Before Ron could say anything or integrate more on the matter, he heard a loud squeal from inside the house, knowing full well that was his daughter's voice. He looked startled for a moment, before turning his gaze to the man sitting next to him, staring at him in disbelief.

'You didn't…'

'Ah don't worry – it's not real.' Just as he said that, George came following after a very sulky and pouting Aidyn, a small-medium glass tank in her arms. Fred chuckled at the pout on her face.

'Aww – what's wrong, princess – don't you like your present?'

'… it's just a stupid rubber snake.' Aidyn mumbled softly, staring down at the black and green rubber toy snake that was nestled curled up among the decorations and dirt inside the tank. George patted her heartedly on the shoulders, snickering a little as he encouraged her to cheer up.

'Hey now, it was tough decision for us, you know.'

'Right, we had to figure out what was worth more – getting a real snake and having your eternal loyalty or – getting our rears beaten into next week by your daddy.'

'Try into the next _two_ weeks.' Ron added sternly, giving both twins a nagging glare at which they both grinned and shrugged off. George leaned into whisper softly in her ear, but still loud enough that her father could still hear him.

'But just think – if you keep this, you'll have something to put a real one in when you get it, right?' Aidyn stared down at the partial empty tank with a pout, before hesitantly nodding her head.

'I guess so…' She sulked; George gave her head a quick scruff before she went off to put the tank with the rest of her presents, then headed back to harass her cousins and family friends. The twins only sighed softly as they watched their niece wonder back off to play with the other kids; Ron sighed into his cup as he took sip, shaking his head as he muttered under his breathe about them spoiling her.

'Come on, Ron – you're going to give in eventually, might as well be now then never.'

'Most kids ask for a puppy or a hamster – but not this girl.' Ron said wearily as he absently watched her play; Fred propped his elbow on to his brother's shoulder.

'Look at the bright side – least she won't turn out to be like any other boring, normal, girly girl when she's older.' He teased; Ron snorted a little as small smiled graced his lips. Considering who her father was, he wasn't at all surprised if she grew up to be anything but normal. Ron stared down at the dark red juices of his cup, before glancing up at his daughter; under this bright sunlight, the pinkish tone in her hair faded, making her long straight hair silver white. She stood out compared to most of her cousins and friends, who were either all redheads or had dark hair – the only exception would be Victoria; she was the only one of the three kids Bill and Fleur had who had inherited Fleur's flawless platinum blond hair.

Aidyn flashed a perfect smile as she caught Rory, telling him it was his turn to be it, before running off before he could tag her back; she had Draco's smile – the one he always gave whenever he won something or achieved success. He was slightly startled by the comforting hand on his shoulder, turning his gaze to see both brothers staring at him with a serious smile.

'Hey – come on, it's your daughter's birthday; try to be happy about it, all right?' Ron blinked at them blankly for a moment, before forcing a smile on his face, nodding his head lightly.

'Yeah, I know.' He felt Fred give him a tight squeeze on the shoulder, before standing up to his feet and headed off with George to join in on the fun with the nieces and nephews. They glanced back briefly to see that the forced smile had dropped from their brother's face, seeing him gazed sadly off to the side.

Aidyn was by far their favorite niece out of their nieces and nephews, despite who her other parent was; it was always their thing to leave her a little something extra and perhaps spoil her a little more then her cousins. They were not one to meddle in their brother's personal affairs, they had long decided that back when they were kids, but as they got close to Aidyn, it was hard not to try and be involved. They were not particular close with Ron as a friend, but he was still their brother nonetheless, and even they didn't wish any kind of ill-content or misery on him. When they had heard about what Malfoy did to him, the only thing that kept them from tracking down the man was their mother sternly warning them to leave the matter alone, and not get involved with Malfoy. They were not afraid to serve time for violent assessment against the fair-haired man, but it was a different story for their mother.

They sighed in unison, before turning to a more joyful mood; they had tried to help as much as they could, but their jokes, their brotherly teasing could only really scratch the surface of what Ron was trying to bury along with the rest of his past.

Remus stood by the table as he watched the children play, watching as a few of the more "younger" adults played along with them. He chuckled softly as he watched Sirius pause a moment to catch his breathe, before William (or Liam as they called him) tugged on his hand and ran him around before the man had even gotten his breath. Adela stood awkwardly by the fence as she watched them run away; Remus couldn't help but feel a little for her. It was probably hard on her being the only somewhat teenager around a group of eight to twelve year-olds, since her interests were changing from the childish things she used to enjoy as well.

A tender smile came to the aging face; Adela and Liam were his and Sirius' pride and joy. They had found them seven years ago while they were still touring around Italy; she was not blood-related to Liam, but Adela took care of him the best she could and acted like an older sister to him, and while they were not blood-related to them, Remus and Sirius adored them as if they were their own children. A rather worn and tired looking Sirius finally managed to break away from his adoptive son's grasp, wearily wondering over to where his lover and unofficial husband was standing. Remus made a small noise of protest as the taller man draped himself over his shoulder.

'I'm not a leaning post, Sirius. Now stand up.'

'Sorry – you're the closest object I can hang on to.' He teased, earning himself a hard stab in the rib cage which made him stand straight up. Sirius winced as he rubbed the spot where the light haired man had poked him, failing at the pout he was attempting to pull off. Remus only laughed at the attempt, before reaching up to lightly kiss him on the mouth, the dark-haired man grinning at him lovingly. He only gazed at him for a moment before Remus' attention delved else where, gazing curiously at the redhead man still sitting on the bench by the side of the house; he knew that look.

Remus gestured lightly over to where Ron was sitting, Sirius blinking at him a moment before turning his head to the direction indicated; a soft sigh escaped him as he too recognized the aura all too well. Without a word between them, both men headed over to where the redhead was sitting, their presence going unnoticed as they carefully sat down on either side of the younger man.

Ron didn't glance up from his cup – he didn't need to look to know who sat down next to him; he did, though, let out a slight startled noise at the hand that reached around his head, looking up to it's owner. Remus gazed at him with a knowing look, Ron forcing a smile as he fiddled with the rim of the plastic cup.

'I'm fine you two – really.' Neither said anything as they continued to stare at him; Ron ducked his eyes down to the ground, trying to swallow past the lump that was forming in his throat. 'Really, it's all right – I mean, my daughter is healthy and growing up well; I've gotten my life back together, and I've got my family back. I'm fine – honest – I'm fine… I'm…' A tear rippled the dark red liquid in his cup as it fell slowly from starlight blue eyes; Ron tried to stop them before more could come, but the fingers raking gently through his hair somehow encourage more to come. Remus leaned his head against his shoulder, tenderly placing a light kiss against the crown of his head; Sirius reached a hand around to rest on his partner's shoulder, before slowly leaning inwards to effectively trap Ron between them in a light embrace, as they let the redhead weep silently for a moment.

Aidyn stopped moving, turning her head to where her father was sitting, sandwiched between her two "uncles"; she watched him with a blank stare as she noticed the tears streaming down his face, not really paying attention to the game going on around her.

'Hey Aidyn! Two o'clock and heading your way!' Gerard called out to her as the dark blue flying disc heading in her direction; Aidyn completely ignored it as it flew by her head and landed a few feet behind her. She reached a hand for the silver pendent hanging around her neck, staring down at it with large, curious blue eyes; it had been her birthday gift last year from her daddy and he told her it was a very special pendent, and that he loved her more then anything else in the world. A rather annoyed and pouty Gerard ran past her to pick up the Frisbee, huffing at her as he threw it off to one of the other kids before chasing after it; Aidyn looked back to her daddy, seeing that he managed to stop crying, seeing her uncle Remus saying something to him. She closed her hand around the heart-shaped ornament, before turning back to play with her cousins, but with only half of her attention.

-- **Chapter Two** --


	3. Chapter 3

Yes! Finally – got a new chapter out! So sorry this is really late… been having a major writer's block like you wouldn't believe! Well, hopefully I'll be able to get more writing done – possibly might have a new story coming out, no promises though.

Right, onwards and outwards!

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

**-----****Chapter Three**** -----**

'Come on, sport – you're not making this any easier.' Draco sighed, as he fussed with the tie strap around the little boy's neck; Hadrian whined as he flailed his hands about, trying to avoid the larger, slender hands attempting to tie a bow around his neck. Tonight he, Anabel and "their" son, Hadrian, were expected at an early night gala, and while they'd all rather stay at home fooling around, they were personally invited by the hostess, and would not hear the end of it if they didn't show up.

The rattle of the front doors distracted the young boy long enough for Draco to successfully tie off a neat little bow out of the tie, giving the small jacket a quick brushing before standing up.

'Sounds like mummy and daddy are finally back.' Hadrian's face lit up as he ran to the opening doors, Anabel and Jason quickly stepping in as they pulled off the hats they were wearing.

'Mummy!' Anabel smiled gently as she lifted her son up in his arms, giving him a tight squeeze. Hadrian giggled joyfully as he hugged his mother back; Jason pouted a little, gently pinching his son on the cheek.

'Hey – don't I get a greeting too?'

'Daddy!' Hadrian instantly rebounded, Anabel struggling to keep a hold on the squirming boy as he reached his tiny arms out for the sandy-haired man standing next to them. Jason laughed as he took the dark-haired boy from her arms, ruffling the hair Draco had painstakingly combed neat not too long ago. The blond grimaced at seeing his earlier efforts go to waste, before shaking his head and sighing; he shook his wrist to glance at his watch, clearing his throat as he glanced over to the family, tapping the crisp clear glass.

'I hate to interrupt this little meeting, but if we don't leave now, we'll be more then just fashionable late.'

'Sorry we were late getting back, Draco. I'll go get dressed now.' Anabel apologised softly, before quickly heading up the stairs; Hadrian struggled out of his father's arms, before Jason put him down on the floor, the little boy running up after his mother reaching to take her hand. Anabel glanced down at him with a questioning look, seeing large green-grey eyes staring up at her adoringly.

'Can I help you get ready, mummy?' He asked innocently; Anabel smiled tenderly as she took his hand and led them up the stairs.

'Sure honey; we'll be right back.' Draco gave a brief nod, standing with Jason as they watched the pair disappear up the grand staircase the led to the second floor. An uneasy silence fell between the two men as they waited for Anabel and Hadrian to reappear; Draco fiddled with the tie around his neck, Jason glancing around aimlessly as he tapped his foot patiently against the floor.

'So, um, whose party are you going to this time?' Jason finally asked curiously, sparing a glance to the fair-haired man standing next to him. Draco let out a sigh as he stared blankly ahead.

'Eldridge – I believe it's her daughter's birthday tonight.'

'Birthday party? Geeze, the rich really like to celebrate in style.' Jason complained causally; Draco felt the corner of his mouth twitch in a half smile, turning his glance to the other man.

'Yes well, no doubt it's also a chance to rekindle connections – I dare say to even possibly find a suitor for her daughter.'

'Never letting the kids chose whatever they want, as always.' Draco felt a bitter smile form at that statement, before turning his gaze away from the sandy-haired man. Seven years and Draco still couldn't face Jason eye to eye; it was not the scarred and tattered appearance of the other man he couldn't stand to face – it was the shame of being blood-related to the man that had done that to him in the first place. The "accident" Jason had been involved in had scarred and torn his face beyond recognition; his nose was slightly crooked, and a small chunk of his ear was missing, along with a slight indent to his lower lip. A large, jagged scar seared across his left eye, which was he was unable to keep open fully and was half-blind because of it.

Draco bit back the threatening nausea rising at the memory of when Jason was finally unwrapped from the masses of bandages. Once Jason had finally woken up, Draco had proposed their current arrangement, but the other man had been hesitant; not simply just because of the danger, but of the fear that Anabel would not love him because of his appearance. Draco knew that Jason knew Anabel was not that kind of person, but that shock, the initial fear of having danced with death, can instill even the most unlikely of doubts; a smile graced his lips as he remembered exactly what the woman had told him when she found out Jason's thoughts.

"_It's the man inside I fell in love with – not with the man outside!_"

The words stuck with them, and remained true even until now; there had been doubts before Hadrian was born, but Draco was glad to have seen the other man's confidence perk back up again as time eased on. A bitter sigh escaped him as he gently combed his fingers through his silver silken locks, not noticing the concerning hazel green-grey eyes gazing at him.

'You all right?' Jason asked seriously.

'No – absolutely disgusted with myself. I stole someone who shouldn't belong to me, I have to force a boy who's not even my son to call me "father" and…' He stopped at the familiar sounds of high heels clicking against the polished wooden floor as Anabel and Hadrian reappeared down the stairs. The pout on the little boy's face and his now neatly parted hair had showed Anabel spent some effort into taming that wild, fly-away mane he had inherited from his true father.

'We're ready to go now, Draco.' The blond nodded his head as he straightened out his coat, and headed towards the door. Anabel followed with her son by her side, pausing briefly to give Jason a quick kiss; Hadrian gave him a brief hug.

'So how long should I expect you out for?' Jason questioned, placing his hands in his pant pockets.

'We should hopefully be able to sneak out after an hour – maybe earlier if this little "brat" here can pull it off.' Draco teased light-heartily as he gazed down at Hadrian with a grin; the little boy only smiled mischievously as he reached out for Draco's hand. Anabel gave them a stern, disapproving glance.

'Now Draco, don't encourage him – you're not his father.' Jason faked a hurt pout, Draco giving her a forced smile as he reached a hand out for the door handle.

'I will be the second we step out these doors.' He spat lightly; Anabel's gaze softened giving a slight nod as the doors opened inward. She gave one more quick parting to Jason, Hadrian also giving a quick wave before they headed out through the open arches; Jason wished them luck before closing the doors behind them, pausing a moment to watch the "Malfoy family" walk down the stone laid path towards the front gate where a vehicle was waiting to take them to Eldridge's gala. A soft sigh escaped him before he closed the doors the rest of the way.

**-8-**

'Is this really necessary?'

'Oh come on, Ron – don't be such a spoil sport.' Ron snorted as he rolled his eyes, leaning back against the chair.

'Me a spoil sport? Never thought I'd hear something like _that_ from you.' The older redhead waved a hand causally as he chose to ignore the comment, before turning a sweet smile to the little girl standing next to him.

'So – chocolate or vanilla?'

'Chocolate!' Aidyn answered with a wide grin, bouncing eagerly on the spot; Ron only rolled his eyes shaking his head as he watched his elder brother tie back flowing, pink-blond hair into a neat little ponytail.

'All right then – chocolate it is.' The little girl squealed, before running off to locate a small step stool from the corner of the tiny kitchen and bring it over to the counter top, stepping onto it to be able to reach above the surface of the counter.

'I'm trying to avoid giving her too much sweets – and you're not helping, Percy.' Ron sighed as he leaned his elbow on the table; Percy only smiled as he rolled back his sleeves.

'It's my late birthday surprise for her; she is my niece after all.' Ron gave up as he let out a slight frustrated growl; it was hard to keep a child from getting spoiled in this family, when practically everyone was intended to do so. Percy reached for the bag of flour, and grabbed a shifter and bowl, gesturing over towards the table Ron was sitting at; he gave Aidyn some quick instructions, and a short demonstration before the girl sat down to work.

Of a list of people less likely to be domestic house-bearers, he and Percy were second to the top (Fred and George being the first on said list, of course); Ron watched as his brother navigated around the tiny space to make a belated chocolate cake for Aidyn. He still had a hard time believing this was the same brother he grew up with for some thirteen years; he had changed so much from being the calculated, over-striving, work alcoholic person he was familiar with. It was also hard believing that the older redhead did not disapprove, or was disgusted of him in any way; it took a little getting use to the kinder words that came from his older brother's mouth, instead of the spiteful accusations he had received before Percy had moved out to university.

_Love does strange things_. Ron mused idly to himself.

'I'm sorry we couldn't make it to Aidyn's birthday party the other day.' Percy apologised as he began stirring the flour Aidyn had shifted along with the eggs, butter and milk; Ron jerked his head up to attention, noticing that his daughter was no longer in the kitchen, having gotten bored with nothing to do.

'Don't worry about it; I know Nich was ill, so you had to take care of him.' Percy glanced over his shoulder with a small smile, before looking back to the mixing bowl in his hands. Ron sighed as he leaned his arms on the table.

'Is he going to be okay? He's been getting sick a lot, recently.'

'Nicholas' always had a weak immune system, and since the weather's been getting colder, it usually the worst around this season.' He answered with a slight sigh, trying to hide the worrying tone in his voice, but Ron caught it easily. He quickly changed the subject, folding his hands together as he tried to force a smile.

'Hey – it's not official yet, but – there's a possibility we might be uncles again.' Percy looked slightly surprised as he turned to face his younger brother.

'Really now? So who's expecting this time? Fleur again? Or did Charlie finally get himself in trouble?' He teased, both men laughing before Ron shook his head; their second eldest brother, Charlie, still had yet to settle down and while he kept to one girlfriend at a time, he was constantly changing at least every three weeks.

'Oh believe me, I think we'd see all of hell if Charlie finally became a dad; no – Ginny thinks she might be pregnant again, but she's not sure. She says she's been feeling kind of out of it, but it could be the weather.' Percy only hummed as he set the stirring spoon aside, pouring the mixed batter into the pan laid out on the counter; Ron watched the sudden stiffness of his brother's movement – he was all too familiar with that feeling. It was the same feelings, after all, he had before Aidyn was born. Ron often wondered if Percy spoiled the child simply because he didn't want to face the fact Ron had something that was supposed to be physically impossible.

'Is my cake done yet, uncle Percy?' Both men jumped slightly at the innocent little voice coming from the doorway, Aidyn standing in the archway with her hair still tied up and her stuffed dragon toy hanging lifelessly by her side. Ron gave her a small frown.

'Now Aidyn, what have I told you about demands like that?' The strawberry-blond girl gave a large pout, but Ron would not back down, giving her a stern look.

'That pout is not going to get it done any faster.' She let out a huff, before curling the stuffed dragon into her arms. Percy couldn't help but snicker at his nieces' adorable little habits.

'I just put it in the oven right now; it should be done in about forty-five minutes or so.'

'Okay. Can I help ice it too?' Her face suddenly lit up as she asked the question; Percy gave her a soft smile as he walked over to pat the small girl on the head.

'Yes, you can help me ice it; I'll even let you lick the spoon after, all right?' Aidyn nodded her head vigorously before bounding off to the living room, leaving her father and uncle by themselves in the kitchen. Percy reached to roll down his sleeves, letting out a light laugh as he watched her.

'Aidyn's got to be the cutest out of all the nieces and nephews.'

'Just make sure _she_ doesn't know of it, or she'll be even more smug.' Ron answer wearily as he scratched the side of his head, before scowling at his own statement – it was reminding him too much about a certain fair-haired man that had walked out of his life. Percy only watched his brother with a blank stare, before facing away from him, adjusting his glasses.

'Look – I know it wasn't the best situation, but at least you're thankful for Aidyn, right?'

'Of course I am – she's pretty much the reason why I'm still living. Otherwise, god knows I would've taken my life years ago.' Percy grimaced at the statement; he hadn't been able to face Ron and apologise for all the bitter years between them till months after he found he was with Aidyn. If she hadn't been there, they never would have faced each other again, and he'd have to spend the rest of his life living with regret of never telling his younger brother that he never hated him.

'I know they haven't deduced the reason why you were able to have her, but it's still – lucky.'

'… There's nothing wrong with adopting, you know. There are plenty of kids out there that need a family.'

'Adopting is nice and all, but it's not the same as having one of your own…' Percy stopped himself as he ran a hand through his bangs; this wasn't the time to be talking about that.

'Sorry, I'm babbling.'

'Don't worry about it.' Ron answered nonchalantly, not once glancing up at his brother as an awkward silence fell between them. Percy cleared his throat as he headed out to the living room.

'Think I'll – go keep Aidyn entertained till the cake is done.' The younger of the two hummed, watching from the corner of his eye as he elder brother disappeared through the archway; who was he to judge those feelings and jealously. He had those same feelings before, and had wished for what had been nothing more then a fanciful dream, only to have it granted at the worst of times and in the worst possible way. Ron turned to face away from the doorway leading out to the living area; he tried to expel the memories, but every time he tried, _he_ always came up. The blank, vacant expression, dim grey eyes lusterless and emotionless, the unwavering tone of his voice as he spoke; the words had torn out his heart, and even now still clawed at what little shreds were left of it. Ron wanted to move on – he wanted to find peace and move on to once again heal the already tattered heart he had given to Draco; he buried his face into his hands, trying to force back the tears threatening to come. How could he possibly move on, when a small part of him was refusing to let go of the fact that he still loved Draco Malfoy.

**-----****Chapter Three**** -----**


	4. Chapter 4

Yes, well – another short chapter, and the plot is starting to get interesting, so I shall be working on the next one right now! So – next chapter shall be out sooner, I hope! :D

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

* * *

**----- ****Chapter Four**** -----**

Quick, slender hands shifted easily through the papers, steady grey eyes reviewing over their content, before reshuffling them all together and set the pile aside to the corner of his desk; a heavy sigh escaped the blond as he leaned back against his chair. Taking over the seat of his father hadn't been Draco's plan, but he should've realised he couldn't escape whatever the senior Malfoy wanted. Years of training and months of renewed disciple made working in the office almost second nature to Draco, as much as he hated to admit, but with the threat of Jason's life depending on his cooperation, the blond didn't have much choice in the matter. Another sigh escaped him – it wouldn't be long till his head secretary would come in to check on him. Pale grey eyes wandered over to the picture frame sitting up on the right corner of his desk; he had no clients or meetings today, so it was all right to have it out. Draco stared sadly at the face smiling back at him, reaching a hand out slowly for the frame gently outline the shape of Ron's face. How many times was he going to debate with himself about finding the other man; he wanted to know if Ron was all right, if the redhead had found happiness without him. Draco drew his hand back, feeling a slight ache in his chest; part of him wanted to believe Ron had moved on without him, but his heart knew better. Even though they've had a few heartbreaks in the beginning, and more then the typical misunderstandings, they had somehow pulled through before ever realising they were in love with each other. He slumped back against the soft leather backing, letting his eyes fall shut for a moment; perhaps shame wasn't the only thing that made the blond afraid to face his ex-lover again – the fear of seeing that Ron _had_ moved on without him.

A knock on the doors jolted him awake from his thoughts, quickly sitting himself straight up in his seat, reaching for the next pile of papers he had to brief through. The doors opened without his word, and young woman dressed in a sharp, white suit walked in; Draco didn't dare meet her eyes as she walked towards his desk, a folder in her hand, a note board tucked in the other one and a stern look on her face.

'If you're trying to pretend to be busy, you're doing a lousy job of it – _Mr_ Malfoy.' Draco only gave her a weary glance, looking up from his work. The woman pushed her glasses up her nose, depositing the folder on the desk in front of him; a silent moan escaped the blond knowing that it was more work. It seemed he'd be staying late tonight.

'Now then – if you're done moping about your past love life, you should concentrate on work then _maybe_ you might get home early tonight.' Draco glowered at her slightly, and even if she wasn't showing it, he could see the hint smug grin on her face. A slight growl escaped him, leaning back against his chair.

'Can't even get a break from my own secretary.'

'I think we've already established what my view of my role is, Malfoy.' This time Draco was sure she was grinning; she gave a quick bow before turning to head out of the office. Defeated, Draco opened up the folder and began briefing through the contents of it, pausing a moment as he made a quick decision.

'Oh Evelyn?' The dark haired woman paused in her tracks, before letting out a soft sigh, turning to face him.

'I know this is your private space, sir, but don't address me so casually again.'

'Could please call Anabel and tell her that I'll be eating out for dinner tonight; she is more then welcome to start without me.' Evelyn gazed steadily at him for a moment, before a soft sigh escaped her, turning her head away so he couldn't see the gentle smile on her face.

'In otherwise – it's all right to have dinner with Hadrian's proper father, and that it's their time to spend together alone as a family.' Draco didn't say anything as he stared blankly at the documents in his hand; the dark haired secretary glanced at him from the corner of her eye before silently shaking her head and walked out of the office. The blond listened to the doors click shut behind her, before letting out a soft sigh; he had managed to earn enough of his father's good will to be allowed to hand pick his own employees. It had been difficult to find people who weren't intimidated by his family name, and very few he had interviewed had made a lasting impression on him; a small smile graced elegant features as he remembered the first time he met Evelyn. She stated boldly and clearly that she didn't care if he _was_ Lucius Malfoy's son, she would not be treated as a slave, nor would she be bullied by someone who didn't have to work to make it to the top. Draco remembered the other applicants' faces at her statement, but their shocked faces after he instantly hired her had been priceless; Evelyn was the most trusted person under his wing and the only one in the office who pushed him to do his job.

A sigh and mumble, Draco busied himself with the work spread out on his desk; he would need to focus on it for now if he wanted to eat at a decent hour tonight.

**-8-**

The restaurant was a little more crowded that usual, but the noise coming from the other tables seemed minimal compared to the activity of two seven year-old boys bouncing in their seats. Ron only sat there silently amazed at his sister's infinite patience with her twin boys as she tried to settle them down; he gazed over to where Aidyn was quietly sitting next to him, playing around with her fork and spoon.

'But we're hungry now!' Gerard whined, Rory nodding his head in agreement with his brother; Ginny gave them both a stern look, before ordering them to sit properly.

'I know you boys are hungry, but you have to wait for it to come. Now sit still and behave, or I will send you both straight to bed when we get home!' Both boys pouted up at their mother, giving her the large, helpless puppy eyes, but Ginny's stare did not waver, motioning with her finger for them to sit. They both whined before slumping against the seat booth, poking at each other gently in hopes of making time go faster; Ginny sighed as she reached for the glass of water on her side, taking a sip from it. Ron only shook his head as he smiled at his sister.

'I don't know how you do it.'

'Believe me, it's like dealing with Fred and George all over again – minus the pranks.' Ginny answered and Ron had to laugh; she looked at him from across the table with a slight jealous sigh, before glancing to Aidyn, who was sitting quietly next to her father.

'You were lucky to have a girl, Ron. She's such a little angel.'

'Oh trust me – she has her moments; she isn't always this well behaved.' Ron managed wearily as he stole a glance at the little girl sitting next to him; Aidyn only grinned up at him with an innocent smile and he couldn't help but laugh a little, reaching a hand out to gently pat her on the head. Ginny smiled softly at the interaction between father and daughter – she was glad Ron kept her, even if it was only for a moment, Aidyn made him happier then any of them could.

'Hey – thanks for inviting us out, Ginny, but you didn't have to.' The redhead woman only waved a hand causally.

'With Dean out to a meeting, I wasn't about to spend it at home alone with two rowdy boys. Besides – thought it would be good to get you out of the flat once in a while.'

'It's much appreciated.'

'Thank you Aunt Ginny.' Aidyn piped in, ignoring the stare her father was giving her; Ginny laughed at the silent nag her brother was giving her niece, before quickly glancing back at her own children to give them a nag of their own. A sigh escaped Ron, catching the younger woman's attention; she followed his gaze to the heart shaped pendent hanging around Aidyn's neck and she couldn't help but feel her heart ache slightly. He was still thinking about – _him_.

'Ron – if you need a moment to yourself, I can watch over the kids.' Ron looked slight startled at his sister's suggestion, before forcing a smile as he face her.

'I'm fine – don't want to leave you here all by yourself.'

'I'm not a little girl anymore, Ron. I'll be fine with the kids and Aidyn is generally well behaved. Besides – a little air might do you some good.' He only stared at his younger sister sadly, but nodded his head in agreement; he gave Aidyn a brief nag to behave for her aunt before sliding out of the booth and headed for the door of the restaurant to step outside for a bit. Ginny watched his retreating back with a sigh; sometimes it was just too easy to read what her brother was thinking. She wasn't the only one watching the redhead man go; Ginny caught Aidyn staring at him with a blank look on her face, before staring down at the table, picking at her napkin dully. Rory and Gerard started to get a little rowdy again, and before Ginny had a chance to nag them, Aidyn lifted her head with a stern look.

'Be quiet!' Both boys pouted at her.

'You're not our mother! And we're older then you, so you can't boss us around!' Gerard retorted back at her, but the starling blue eyes gazing back at him did not falter. Ginny gently smacked her son on the back of his head.

'That's no way to talk! Now why don't you two follow her example and sit down properly!' Gerard rubbed the back of his head, before slouching forward in his seat with his arms crossed; Rory, being the younger, copied his posture, slouching forward in his seat too with a pout even though he wasn't the one hit. Ginny sighed at her boys before glancing over to where Aidyn sat quieter then usual, flicking at the corner of her napkin; she was more observant than Ron gave her credit for.

Outside of the restaurant, the chilly late autumn air blew lightly against his face as he stared down at the sidewalk. Ron loved Aidyn more then anything else in the world, but there were some days he just couldn't even be around his own daughter; she was just too much like Draco and he hated the fact he couldn't stand to face her during those moments. Somehow, she seemed to know when he needed to be alone, and would spend the time keeping herself occupied in her room till Ron felt he was ready to face her again. He kicked at the street lamp post next to him, since it was the closest object to him – Aidyn shouldn't have to feel like an enemy to her own parent, and Ron couldn't help the guilt that he was making her feel that way. He ran his fingers through his bright red locks, letting out a frustrated sigh.

_I don't want him back in my life – I'm fine without him and Aidyn doesn't need him!_

'… Ron…?' The redhead froze at the sound of his name, almost afraid to look at the person who had spoken out to him; wide blue eyes slowly turned to face down the sidewalk coming eye to eye with someone he hadn't seen for years. Ron could only stand there speechless as he took in the other man – had he always been that thin, or had he lost weight since then; his hair had gotten a little thinner and didn't fall in front of his face like it used to seven years ago.

'Ron – it really is you.'

'… Draco…'

**----- Chapter Four ------**

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Dun dun dun! What are the odds? Well – probably half of you were expecting this…


	5. Chapter 5

Ha! This time it didn't take me a billion years to update! This should've been sooner, but well – you know me, I'm lazy… need a good kick in the rear sometimes… -ahem-

Anyways…

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

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**----- Chapter Five -----**

'… Draco…'

'It really is you, Ron.' Draco said cautiously; he had only been searching for a place to have dinner – he hadn't expected to run into the other man like this. It almost felt like one of those sappy romance movies where the broken couple always ran into each other outside the street in front of a restaurant, but Draco wasn't foolish enough to believe this meeting would end happily.

Ron couldn't say anything as he stared at the fair-haired man standing in front of him; why now, after all this time, did the other have to appear in front of him. Draco didn't move from his spot, and the redhead had to wonder why he was hesitating; he was fairly certain the blond had made it perfectly clear he didn't love him anymore. After an eternity of silence, Draco took a cautious step forward, not daring to reach a hand out for the other man.

'I – it's been a while, hasn't it Ron?' he asked; a fury began boiling in the redhead's veins at the tenderness in the other's voice. He turned his eyes away from the blond, glaring at the black tarred pavement.

'Y-yeah, shame it wasn't longer…' He managed to spit out; Draco didn't flinch at the tone, knowing full well the other's reaction. No matter how many years they've been apart, Ron was still as predictable as ever when his emotions took over.

'Ron, I –'

'Don't ever call me by my first name – _Malfoy_; now if you'll excuse me.' Ron turned to head inside the restaurant; without thinking, Draco reached out a hand to grab him by the arm. The redhead instantly reacted, slapping away his hand as he spun around to glare at him.

'_Don't_ – touch me!' He gritted out through his teeth; Draco withdrew his hand, surprised by his own actions, before ducking his gaze to the side in slight shame. Ron held his hand over his arm, trying to still the throbbing pain reacting to that look; he had been fooled one too many times by his own heart – he wasn't going to let it happen again.

'Ron, wait – please! I – about what happened – I didn't – I mean, I just… I…'

'You made yourself pretty clear about seven years ago, Malfoy. I was a road block in your life, a black spot, if you will. You made that plainly clear to me.'

'No! Please, Ron – if you could just listen for a minute, I can explain.' His hands curled into fists; the words coming from the blond's mouth was just making him all the more angrier – but whether it was at the other man or himself, Ron couldn't tell.

'There's nothing more to explain, and as I recall – you wanted nothing more to do with me. Good evening to you.'

'Ron, please!'

'Daddy – aunt Ginny says the food is ready.'

_Daddy?!_

Both men turned their attention to the little girl stepping out of the restaurant door, blinking her wide bright eyes at them. Ron quietly thanked her for the message, saying he'd been inside in a few minutes; the little girl gazed curiously up at Draco, before moving to reach her hands out to take Ron's arm.

'Daddy – who's he?'

'It's not important, sweetie.' The words didn't strike him as hard the one single word that came from the little girl's mouth; Draco could only stared down at what he thought had to be the most gorgeous child he had ever seen. She had long, straight, strawberry-pink blond hair that was more pink then blond, as if the Weasley red had tried to push its way through; she had Ron's startling bright blue eyes that were gazing widely up at him through light, curly lashes. She had a delicate, rounded nose and her skin was a flawless pale blush rose, marked only by a small, dense cluster of freckles that graced the bridge of her nose. He could only stare silently at this little girl as the thought slowly sunk in – Ron had a daughter.

'Aidyn, you go wait inside, and I'll be right there.' Aidyn hesitated a moment, glancing between her father and Draco, before slowly nodding her head and walked back inside the restaurant to rejoin her aunt and cousins. Ron sighed softly as he watched go, not daring to look at the man standing in front of him. It took a moment to swallow past the sudden lump that formed in his throat, but Draco managed it, opening his mouth as he managed to push a sentence out.

'You … you have a daughter?' The redhead only gave him a vacant stare as he nodded his head.

'Yeah – she's my blood daughter, by the way.' Draco gave a stiff nod; he could tell without having the other confirm it – she looked a lot like Ron despite the blond hair.

'I have nothing more to say to you, Malfoy, so I suggest you just go on your way.' Draco wanted to open his mouth to stop him, to say that what he had said seven years ago was a lie, that he still loved him, that Jason and Anabel were having a "secret" affair behind his back – but nothing could come out. All he could think about was the adorable little girl just now who had called the redhead "daddy".

The sound of the door opening again distracted their attention, only this time it was Ginny who stepped out into the open, a frown on her face. Before Ron could open his mouth to say anything, Ginny cut him off first, tenderly placing a hand against his shoulder.

'Could you please watch the kids for a second? I'll be right in soon.' She requested; Ron meekly nodded his head – he knew better than to argue against his younger sister. Ginny gave him a soft pat on the shoulder as he trekked past her to go inside, before turning a harsh glaring in the other man's direction. Draco shrank back slightly at the glare; he almost didn't recognise the young woman standing in front of him, she had gained a bit of weight since the last time.

'Look, I – Gin- Mrs…'

'Thomas – and I don't want to hear it. Coincidence, or not, you listen carefully Mr Malfoy – I swear, if ever come within five feet of Ron again, I promise you – I will not be the only one pounding down on that sorry arse of yours!' Draco felt as if his mouth had been sewn shut; Ginny give him a huff before marching back into the restaurant, leaving the fair-haired man standing alone outside in the cold with nothing but his thoughts to keep company. Ron had a daughter – he couldn't get rid of the image of the little girl, Aidyn, clinging so tenderly to the redhead's arm, nor could he ignore the sudden sharp pain that struck his chest. He had been expecting it – he had hoped that Ron had moved on without him, that the other man had found love with someone else… he had thought that someone else would've been another man. Draco forced himself to walk forward; why was the thought of Ron being with a woman affecting him more than the thought of him being another man. He grasped at the sides of his head, at a sudden loss for his appetite; he needed to talk to someone, but he didn't want to disrupt Anabel and her family; he quickly wiped at the tears that were threatening to come, managing to keep them at bay. He didn't want to bother _her_ either, but right now, she was the best person he could run to.

**-8-**

'I'll get it.' Chanya was about to push herself up from the couch, but her husband placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, gently pushing her back down while giving her a nagging glance.

'_I'll_ get it; you just sit still like you're suppose to, dear.' Chanya pouted up at her husband for treating her like a child, but Roberto only shook his head before going to answer the door, wondering who would be knocking at this hour of the night. He let out a silent sigh as he unhooked the locks of the door, slowly easing it open enough to take a small peek at who was standing on the other side; light brown eyes went slightly wide with surprise.

'Oh – this is unusual for you at this hour.'

'I'm sorry to bother you this late, Mr Macias, but I – I really needed to speak with Chanya.' Roberto only gave the man a soft smile, before stepping aside to open the door further to the let the blond in. Draco gave him a soft bow, before stepping inside the flat; he jumped a little at the hand that slapped him tenderly on the shoulder.

'There's no need for formalities, boy – and you know you are always welcome here, no matter what time.'

'… Thanks.' Draco managed to mutter; Roberto gave him a quick pat before directing him towards the living room.

'Chanya's sitting in the living room; looks like you need a good shoulder to cry on – all you're missing is a little rain to complete your look.' A small smile managed to appear on the blond's face, as he gave the older man a slight nod; Chanya had married a good man. The dark haired man led them towards the couch where Chanya was sitting, the woman looking mildly surprised at Draco's presence in her home.

'This rare – you don't usually come over so late.'

'I'm sorry, but I just… I couldn't think of anyone else to turn to.' Chanya gazed at him with a soft look, patting the seat next to her as a motion for the blond to sit down. Draco hesitated a moment, before slowly walking around the couch and sat himself down by her side; tender, loving fingers raked softly through his hair, an almost instant calming flowed through him as pale grey eyes turned to gaze into dark, black ones.

'Why don't I go make some tea for us then.' Roberto suggested, as he started making his way towards the kitchen; Chanya thanked him before devoting her full attention to the younger man sitting next to her. Draco was silent for the longest while before she took the initiative and get him to start talking.

'I know you do come to visit me once in a while, but at a time like this – for you to come, there usually has to be a reason for it.' She stated, gazing at him steadily as she awaited his answer; Draco only glanced at her for a few seconds, before turning his gaze to the floor, trying to suppress the pain in his chest long enough to explain what had just happened.

'I…I saw Ron earlier this evening.'

'So you finally decided to find him?' She asked; Draco shook his head, feeling his throat suddenly close up on him.

'No, we just happened to bump into each other by chance, I wasn't really – actively looking for him.' It was the truth what he said, but yet why did he feel like that his heart hadn't been completely behind it. He was sure that Chanya would have noticed the uncertainty to that statement, but she said nothing and merely nodded her head.

'Did you get a chance to tell him the truth then?'

'I – I couldn't…'

'Draco…'

'I couldn't tell him – every time I tried to, I just – nothing would come out.' His voice was beginning to crack; Draco leaned forward on his knees to avoid facing the older woman, taking in several deep breaths to stop the tears that were threatening to spill. Chanya sighed as she shook her head, reaching out a hand to tap him lightly on the shoulder.

'Draco – he has the right to know that much; about what Lucius did to Jason, and that you and Anabel aren't –'

'He has a daughter…' He interrupted; Chanya froze for a moment as she stared blankly at him, taking her a moment to register what the younger man had said.

'Wha-what?'

'Ron, I – when I saw him earlier, he… Chanya – he has a fucking _daughter_!' This time he couldn't hold back the tears as the pain he had been holding back all this time finally broke free. Chanya gently wrapped her arms around his shoulder, getting him to lean against her chest, as she tried to sooth him.

'She's… she's perfect, Chanya – she had to be – the most adorable thing I had ever seen; and he…' He didn't know what he was saying; Chanya held him tighter, softly stroking the back of his head as she tried to hush his tears to a halt. She knew how much this was paining Draco – the only way Ron would have a blood daughter is if he had been with a woman, and it was made apparent that the someone he had moved on with was in fact, a woman. Chanya began rocking him a little, Roberto re-entering the living room with a tray full of cups and a pot of tea; he gazed sympathetically at his wife, before carefully putting the tray down on the coffee table, reaching for the pot to pour the tea into the individual cups. It took several minutes before Draco was able to reign in his tears under control again, slowly pulling away from Chanya's warm embrace as he tried to wipe away the remaining few.

'I – I'm sorry; I'm always causing trouble for you.' Draco apologised; Chanya merely smiled at him, gently mussing with his hair.

'You were there for me, Draco – now it's my turn to be here for you.' Draco didn't glance at her; Roberto handed out the cups to everyone, Draco muttering a small thanks as he accepted the one pass to him.

'I do not know exactly how it feels, but I can – vaguely understand why you feel upset about this – about Ron having a daughter.' Draco didn't say anything as he took a quiet sip from his cup; Chanya continued on, staring down at the dark content of her own cup.

'I believe Ron had said he found no interest in women – he had never found them attractive, and so affirmed he was a hundred percent gay,' this time, Draco glanced at her from the corner of his eyes, unsure of where this conversation was going to go. 'Yet – for him to have a daughter, he would've had to been with a woman, going back against his declaration about having no attraction to women. That's what hurts the most, doesn' it?'

Draco didn't answer her, turning his gaze back to liquid in his cup, trying to ignore the feeling clawing at his heart. Chanya handed her cup back to Roberto, who put it down on the table in front of her for her, slowly reaching her hand out for the blond's.

'Draco - I'm not sure how you feel now, but either way, I still say you should tell Ron the truth.'

'… I don't – I don't want to break him away from his family.'

'It doesn't have to be like that; I know it was what you were expecting, but there are just some things – can't assume like that.' Draco felt a slight twitch of guilt; if for any reason he told Ron about his father finding out about Jason and Anabel it would've been, by his own selfish reason, to have the redhead back in his life. Chanya's hand tightened slightly over his, making him jolt a little in surprise; Roberto took the cup from his hands to avoid any tea from spilling.

'No matter how much it pains you, perhaps it's time to let him go, Draco. If he had happy with his life now, can you really interfere with it?' The blond bite down on his lower lip, before turning his gaze away from their eyes, reaching to hold a hand over his heart.

'I – I can't live without him, Chanya…'

'We can't replace him, but there are so many people around you who care for you, Draco. We can't give you the same kind of love he has given, but we _can_ give it, all the same; let us be there for you, don't shut us away. We can't heal all of it, but we can pick up some of the pieces and help you move on.' Her voice was shaking; Draco lifted his eyes away from the floor, facing them with dark watery black eyes, feeling the hand over his tighten even more.

'That's what we're here for – to catch you when you fall and push you back up.' Chanya put her free hand over her mouth, trying to stop the tears that were threatening to push their way through. Roberto carefully went over to her side, gently grasping her by the shoulders. Draco reached his other hand over hers, bowing his head as he held hers tightly.

'Thank you… for everything…'

**-8-**

That hadn't been his best night, but he'd be lying if he said it was his worst; Ron fell back against the mattress of his bed, ignoring the squeaky springs protest at the sudden weight. Why did tonight of all nights did the blond had to pick to go out for; he had calmed down a little since earlier this evening and he remembered the words, the soft gentle tone which the other man had spoke with. For a moment, Ron felt his heart tingle before he let out a sharp growl, sitting up straight on his bed. There was nothing left for Draco to explain – he had made himself clear as a crystal seven years ago, and Ron wasn't about to let his heart tell him otherwise.

He quickly tried to shove out thoughts of the fair-haired man and the hurt, almost guilt ridden expression he had shown tonight; last thing he wanted to do was upset Aidyn just because he couldn't handle his own emotions. A thought struck him, taking a quick glance at the clock – nine-forty pm, and yet there was a not a sound from the little girl. Worried, Ron quickly stood up from his bed and paced out of his room, heading towards the door leading to Aidyn's; he was surprised that her lights were off. He turned the handle slowly, taking a quick peek in to see her nightlight was on, and the fair-haired child was curled up on her side under the covers. Ron felt a tug of guilt in his chest – Aidyn never went to bed willingly this early unless she knew something was wrong. The redhead let out a soft sigh, moving to close her door before pausing; he had wanted to wait till she was old enough, but Ron decided that perhaps it was better if he told her now.

While the decision was still firm in his mind, he stepped into the dimly light room, softly calling out her name; when Aidyn didn't reply, he sat down quietly on the edge of her bed, gently tapping her shoulder – she didn't budge.

'I know you're not sleeping, sweetie.' Only the silent night air greeted him; Ron sighed as he gently patted her shoulder, focusing his gaze to the nightlight plugged into the wall by her bed.

'Aidyn – you know daddy loves you more than anything else in the world, and – I'm sorry if I sometimes… make you feel otherwise. It's just… before you were born, there was someone in daddy's life who was – very special… I… I really cared for this person, but they – hurt me in a really bad way…' Ron paused for a moment to catch his breath, briefly gazing at Aidyn before looking back to the nightlight.

'I'm sorry if, sometimes I take that pain out on you; you're the most precious thing to, Aidyn. I don't want to do anything that makes you feel – hurt or upset.'

'… is that why I don't have a mum?' Ron startled a little at the question, turning his head towards wide blue eyes staring up at him curiously; he reached out a hand to gently pull her pink-blond hair away from her face.

'It's – a bit complicated Aidyn; no you don't have a mum because, well – you never really had one to begin with.' The little girl only blinked up at him; Ron scratched the back of his head as he let out a slight frustrated sigh. How could you explain to a seven year-old girl that their daddy is also their mummy, and that they came from two daddys instead of a mummy and a daddy.

'I'll try to explain it to you in the morning; daddy needs to think on this a little more.' He leaned over to plant a loving kiss on the child's forehead, before pulling back to slowly stand up to his feet; Aidyn quickly sat herself up in bed, reaching her arms around his waist as she hugged him tight.

'I love you, daddy.' Ron looked slightly surprised before a soft smile came to his face, gently embracing his daughter back.

'I love you too, Aidyn – more then anything else in the world.' He pulled back to give her another kiss on the forehead, seeing a smile come to the little girl's face; he tucked her back in under the covers before standing up to his feet. He glanced briefly over his shoulder once he reached the door, seeing her snuggle in cozily with her stuffed dragon toy, burying her face against her pillow as she tried to drift off to sleep. Ron shut the door quietly behind him, before making his way over to his own room; somehow he felt lighter after telling her that much. There was still a lingering weight, but it didn't feel as heavy as it had been before; a sigh escaped him though as he realised he'd have to figure out a way to tell Aidyn that her daddy and "mummy" were one in the same. He wouldn't tell her about Draco being her other father – he never told the blond back then, and he decided that the other didn't deserve to know; besides, Aidyn was doing fine without him, and Ron saw no reason to have the other man back in his life.

**----- Chapter Five -----**

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Hmm – more to come soon!


	6. Chapter 6

Figures I don't start writing until the _end_ of the holidays… anyways, to sum it up – there were no updates cuz I've been on vacation for the past month, and so my lazy ass didn't get much writing done…

Course, when I had like over _**two hours**_ at the airport thanks to delays –shakes fists- I popped open the computer and did something productive, and so – viola~ A new chapter – enjoy!

… Oh yeah – did I mention I got a frickin' head cold from the plane? Lovely, right?

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc are used.

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**----- Chapter Six -----**

Draco heaved the doors open with a heavy sigh, easing them shut behind him as the click echoed loudly in his ears; this was the last place he'd ever want to come to willingly – especially on a day off, but he just couldn't think of any where else to go. Pale grey eyes glanced wearily around the empty office space – since no one worked today, most of the building was completely empty aside from security. The blond had not return home last night and ended up staying with Chanya and her husband last night; he hadn't wanted to impose on her, but he felt he didn't have the courage to face Anabel and her family after what had happened.

Another sigh escaped the man, slowly walked over to the sectional couches and plopped himself ungracefully into the cushions. His encounter with Ron and his daughter and the talk he had with Chanya had left him with a lot to think about; even though he was still leery, Chanya was right – the redhead did deserve to know the truth. Ron deserved to know the real reason to their break up seven years ago; Draco leaned forward in his seat, burying his forehead against his palm. He tried to force back the tears that were threatening to spill – he knew he couldn't bring the other man back to him, even if he did tell the truth; Ron was a father now and probably happy with his wife – even if the redhead understood and forgave him, there was no way he was expected to walk away from his family.

Draco jumped at the rattling noise of the door handles, jerking his head to glance behind him as the doors of the office slowly opened inward. He was rather surprised to see Anabel enter in through the large, brilliantly carved wooden doors, a slight worrying look on her face.

'I thought you would be here.' She exclaimed softly, a small smile of relief gracing her face; Draco looked away from her, staring down at the plush, carpeted floor.

'How'd you figure that?' The young woman closed the doors softly behind her, coming up to the side of the couch.

'Chanya told me you had left when I called her this morning, and since you didn't return home – where else would you go?' She reasoned; the blond only sighed, running a hand through his silver-blond hair. Anabel took a seat down next to him, tenderly placing her hand over his, pale grey eyes looking at in slight surprise.

'Is something wrong? You usually don't come here on your own will.' Draco only gazed at her softly, before looking away, shaking his head. Anabel didn't budge, still holding her hand over his and glancing at him sternly. After several minutes of silence, Draco shifted a little in his seat – he had believe that Chanya was the only who could stare him into admittance; he wondered when Anabel had begun to master that ability. Taking in a deep sigh, he turned to face her eye to eye.

'I – I saw Ron last night.' Draco could see doe brown eyes widen in surprise; he felt the hand around his tighten a little.

'What happened? Obviously it went badly if you had to spend the night at Chanya's.' Draco didn't say anything at first, feeling Anabel gently jostle his hand a little; he could remember the pain mingling with the anger in starlight blue eyes, how the redhead had been so against his touch. Tears began to push their way through; he had expected the reaction, he had been expecting to be punched in the face, he had been expecting to be spat at – those were not nearly as painful as the one single, simple little word the little girl called the other man while clinging lovingly to his arm. Draco buried his face in his palms, the tears streaming freely down his face as he broke down and began explaining to Anabel what had happened last night. The brunette put a comforting arm around his shoulder, reaching into her skirt pocket for a kerchief and handed it to him.

'I'm sorry Draco.'

'She was beautiful, Anabel – I just couldn't – Ron and I could never have something like that, so maybe I understand a little why he'd marry a woman, but it still just…' Anabel quietly hushed him, encouraging him to keep wiping away at his tears; after several minutes of pats and soft, comforting words she managed to calm him down so that his tears had slowed to a halt.

'I agree with Chanya on several things – even if Ron does have a family now, you should tell him what really happened seven years ago.' Draco meekly nodded his head; Anabel took both his hands with hers. 'And – we can't replace him, but we do love you Draco. And don't start about Jason and Hadrian being just _my_ family – they're your family too.'

'We're not blood related, even if you are my – "wife".'

'We don't have to be related by blood – when I told Hadrian you weren't coming home last night, he kept asking when you would be back. Draco – he loves you just like he would a real uncle; you don't have any idea how you depressed him last night.' Draco looked at her slightly surprised; he hadn't expected to mean that much to the small child he wasn't even related to. Anabel offered him a small smile, gently shaking his hands.

'You have people who care about you more then anything else in the world – no matter what you've done. Don't ever forget that, Draco.' Anabel preached; perhaps she was hanging around Chanya too much, but Draco couldn't help but smile back at her. He gave her a small nod, the brunette's smile widening a little, before she released his hands and stood up to her feet.

'Ready to go home now; I know of a certain little boy waiting to pounce you.' Draco laughed a little as he stood up to his feet, tenderly taking Anabel around the shoulder.

'Yeah, I guess I'm ready to return home now.' Anabel nodded in approval, allowing the older man to guide her out of the office, the blond pausing briefly to lock the doors before they continued out of the building. As they stepped out of the building and into the sun, Draco glanced around the street idly; he knew that his heart would never move on away from the redhead and that he'd probably die as a single man – but at least, to his comfort, he wouldn't have to be alone for the rest of his life. He gently patted Anabel on the shoulder, the young woman glancing at him curiously, but remained silent at the slight smile on his face.

**-8-**

The clouds drifted idly across the sky, but showed no threat of rain, which was a relief to parents and nannies as they waited by the school gates. Luna glanced up at the sky with a dreamy look as she leaned up against the wall surround the school, letting out a soft contented sigh, pulling her hair away from her face. The end of school bell rang, many parents standing alert as the gates opened inward, hearing the rushing footstep of the small children as they all rushed out of the building; Luna pushed herself away from the wall as she waited for one particular little girl, spotting her soon enough as she exited out of the gates.

Aidyn glanced up and down the sidewalk for her father, but saw Luna waving to her instead. The young blond smiled, running over to the woman and gave her a tight hug around the waist; Luna embraced her back giving her a wide smile as she patted the little girl's head.

'Hey – how are we doing today, Aidyn?'

'I'm okay – Luna where's daddy today?' The woman smiled, leaning down to her height as she took her hands.

'Daddy called me and asked me to apologise to you for him; he said his big, evil devil boss is keeping overtime, so he'll see you when he gets home.' Luna explained, using her hands to make horns on the side of her head; Aidyn only giggled at the motion. She loved Luna, and didn't mind that she was here to pick her up instead of her father. She took the woman's hand as they began walking back to the apartment, Aidyn chatting about her day at school while Luna only nodded and listen.

By pure coincidence, Luna was once again Ron's next door neighbor, though it had already been several months before they discovered this. It was on short notices like this that Luna offered to baby sit Aidyn if something unexpected came up – like being forced to work overtime such as today's case was.

'Ellis not with you today, Luna?' Aidyn asked curiously, large blue staring up at the blond woman; Luna shook her head.

'She is working just like your daddy is, but she'll be around on the weekend.' The little girl only hummed, swinging her hand a little as they walked; Luna didn't mind, swinging along with her until they reached the apartment, pulling out the spare key Ron had given her for such just occasions. Aidyn tucked her shoes off and placed them neatly on the rack by the door as she entered in, Luna simply slipped hers off and left them by the entrance.

'How about a little snack? I can help you with your schoolwork too, while we wait for your daddy to come home.' Luna offered; Aidyn nodded her head, dropping her bag on the couch as she plopped herself down on it.

'Can I have chocolate or a cookie?' She asked eagerly; Luna only gave her a smile, shaking her head as she headed towards the kitchen.

'Sorry – fruits only, it keeps you better focused. So – apple, orange or banana?' Aidyn pouted a little before sullenly answering; Luna giggled a little at the reaction before heading in to wash and cut up an apple for them. Aidyn was a little spoiled thanks to having a large family, but at least to say she wasn't difficult to deal with; by the time the blond haired woman had peeled and cut some pieces of apple for them, the little girl was sitting on the floor in front of the coffee table, her homework already spread out on top the surface.

Luna took a seat next to her, placing the dish of apple pieces between, both girls munching silently as Luna watched over Aidyn work occasionally stepping in to help with a problem or two when the little girl got stuck. They were almost done with the homework when the rattling jingle of keys caught their attention, Aidyn on her feet and running to the door as it opened inward.

'So sorry I'm late, but – I'm home.'

'Daddy!' Ron reached his arms out for his daughter, picking her up as he hugged her tight; Aidyn held on to him tight around the neck, welcoming her father back with a huge grin on her face. Luna smiled as she stood up to her feet, heading out towards the door only stopping briefly to put her shoes on.

'Thanks again for watching her, Luna – I'm sorry it was such short notice.' Ron apologised, but the woman merely smiled and waved a hand casually.

'Don't worry about it, Ron, I don't mind. I love watching over Aidyn.' The redhead thanked her again, slowly letting his daughter down to the floor before releasing her; Aidyn gave Luna quick hug and a small thanks, before the woman left out the door. Once the door had clicked shut, Ron toed his shoes off and placed them on the rack, before allowing Aidyn to drag him over to the living room couches, chatting his ear off about her day at school and the small time she had spent with Luna just now. Ron appraised her for the work she had finished while he was still at work, smiling softly at the smug little grin that came to her delicate features; a sigh escaped the redhead as he reminded himself about last night's conversation. He couldn't evade the subject forever, and Aidyn was bound to ask him someday why she didn't have a mother – may as well be now then when she was older and may not forgive him as easily for not telling the truth.

'Aidyn, honey – there's something I need to talk with you about.' He started; Aidyn only nodded her head, crawling on to the sofa and gazed up at him with an expecting stare. Ron took in a deep breath before sitting down next to her; he still wasn't sure how he was going to explain to the little seven year old about her birth, despite having had all night and today to think about it. Unsure of where to start, he decided to bring up last night's talk just to refresh her memory.

'Remember when – last night – daddy told you, you didn't have a mother?' She nodded her head; Ron paused as he took in a deep breath, reaching a hand to rub the back of his neck. 'I know I told you I would explain, but it's – it's really complicated. The reason you don't have a mother is because – is because I was your mother.'

Ron bit down on his lip, gazing down at his daughter nervously; Aidyn only stared up at him curiously, tilting her head to the side as she stretched her arms in front of her.

'So – I was asleep in daddy for nine months?' She asked innocently; the redhead couldn't help but inwardly smile at how his mother had taught the term to her. He let out a huge sigh, shifting slightly in his seat.

'Yes, you were asleep inside daddy – and no, daddies don't usually have babies sleeping inside them, I was just – special.'

'How did you have me?' Ron hung his mouth open for a moment, before shutting it as he glanced to a corner of the room; that was one thing he was definitely sure Aidyn wasn't ready to know yet – least not till she could understand concepts like surgery or "under the knife". However that wasn't what she had meant.

'Grandma says that you need two people to make a baby – so how did daddy make me if I have no mum.' Ron placed a hand over his mouth, unsure whether he should be laughing or embarrassed; Aidyn sat with her legs crossed on the couch as she waited patiently for her father to answer her simple question. Finally, after taking several minutes to gather his thoughts – and his courage – Ron turned to his daughter, and answered.

'Remember when I told you, last night, about how daddy used to have some special to him? The one who hurt me?' She nodded her head silently. 'That person… was another guy, and… you have two daddies, dear.' He couldn't say it – he couldn't say that Aidyn had another father, just merely that she had two daddies instead of one. The little girl only looked up at him curiously, playing with her feet.

'So daddy is kinda like uncle Percy – he likes other boys?'

'Yes, daddy likes – other guys.' He hesitated; a contemplative look came to the little girl's face as she stared down at her feet. Ron fiddled with his fingers – this was the first time he's told Aidyn that he preferred other men, since he hadn't actively dated when Draco broke up with him seven years ago. Wide, innocent starling blue eyes gazed up at him.

'Will I get another daddy then?' She asked endearingly; Ron gave her a soft smile.

'Do you want another one?' Aidyn gave him a half shrug, half nod as she glanced at the floor.

'If he makes you happy.' Ron swooped her up in his arms, hugging the young blond close to him; Aidyn smiled warmly as she moved to climb on to her father's lap, snuggling against his chest as she hugged him back. Ron rocked her gently, thanking whatever force allowed him to have such a wonderful daughter; perhaps when time permitted – and if he ever allowed his heart to – he may just consider dating again. It was time for him to move on now, Draco was never going to came back to him (as much as his heart wanted to deny it), and there was no point trying to wait for something that would never be again.

**----- Chapter Six -----**


	7. Chapter 7

Yes, well – I did a lot of writing at the end of my vacation –woot- so – new chapter~

And thanks to the stupid cold, I'm now half deaf since my ears can't unblock -shakes fist- stupid cold...

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

* * *

**----- Chapter Seven -----**

'Now don't go wander too far off, all right? Stay where I can see you.' Ron nagged his daughter as they entered in the park; Aidyn nodded her head as she let his hand go, bouncing the small ball she had brought along to play with. He gave a quick pat on the shoulder before the little girl raced off to the more grassy area, chasing after her ball; Ron watched her from the path, a small smile on his face. One day, he'd have to explain it further to Aidyn the talk they had nearly half a month ago once she was old enough, but for now he felt better than he ever had in his life.

It had surprised him how much pressure he felt had been released when he told her everything, and somehow he hadn't felt as depressed during those small moments when Aidyn reminded him of Draco. His family and friends had been happy to hear when he said he was thinking about dating again – even Sirius and Remus had been pleased to hear that when he told them; Ron wasn't actively seeking to date, since he had to devote most of his time to his daughter, but on occasions someone would catch his eye and he'd dare himself to flirt a little, if welcomed.

A sigh escaped him though as his heart ached in his chest; even though he said he would move on, it was an easier said task then done. He shook his head clear as he jogged slowly after Aidyn, calling out to her to remind her to stay close; somewhere in his mind, he wondered what Draco was going to say to him that night they had bumped into each other. His heart was aching to know, hoping that the blond still loved him, but he knew better now – he didn't go through three heartbreaks and not learn a thing or two from them before dating the other man.

Ron shoved the silver haired man out of his mind, continuing with monitoring his daughter as she played around with her ball; it wasn't as if he'd meet the other in such a common place like a park.

**-8-**

'There are no ducks.' Hadrian pouted, tugging at the dark brown scarf around his neck; Draco only smiled, shaking his head as he came up behind the boy, re-wrapping the scarf tenderly around the tiny neck.

'Well, it's almost winter, sport. Most of them have flown to warmer places by now.' Large, wide childish eyes stared up at him, Hadrian reaching a tiny hand to cover his scarf up over his nose; Draco took him by the hand and began walking them away from the empty lake and back along the path. He had figured Anabel and Jason deserved some time to themselves today, so the blond had offered to take Hadrian out for a while; Anabel had been a little reluctant since the weather had been getting colder, but Jason had been all for the idea. Besides – after his talk with Anabel half a month ago, Draco had decided he wanted to spend as much time with his "nephew" as he could. Hadrian didn't mind the extra attention – in fact, there were days when the blond was at work that the little boy would constantly pester his mother when his uncle would be home.

'Where you would like to go from here? We've got a lot of time before we go back home.' Draco asked, walking them slowly along the park path; he would like to take Hadrian back here in the spring time when the leaves and flowers were in full bloom. Due to the winter season approaching, many of the trees were already stricken and bare, the grass was dry and dormant as were the flowers. Hadrian only fiddled with his scarf, as he thought of what they could do next, when a chirping sound distracted the little boy, eyes glancing to one of the barren trees in front of them.

'Look! That bird is still here!' Without thinking, Hadrian pulled his hand out of Draco's grasp and began running after the little bird as it took off. Draco called out after him, quickly trying to recapture the boy's hand, but little brunet slipped through his fingers and ran off. The blond ran his fingers through his hair as he let out a frustrated sigh – just as much as he resembled his father, he resembled his mother in several different ways – all most of them annoying. He paced after the little boy, hoping to catch up with him as he drifted further and further from his sight; Draco sighed in his head.

_I suppose this is one way to pass time…_

Hadrian kept chase after the bird, not realising he was leaving his uncle behind as he watched it perch itself in a tree. The little boy stopped just underneath it, remaining absolutely still and quiet as he merely observed it, watching it pick at its wing, ruffle its feathers and twitch its head around as it surveyed the area.

'Ah – my ball!' Grey-green blinked at the light tap against his foot, staring down the round blue ball that bounced against him. A girl with bright pink blond hair came running up to him, picking it up as it rolled away from his foot; grey clashed with blue as the two little children stared at each other, before the girl gave him a smile.

'Hi – wanna play together?' She asked him sweetly; Hadrian folded his hands in front of him, glancing to the side with an uncertain expression on his face.

'I dunno… mummy says I'm not allowed to talk to strangers.' The girl tucked the ball under her arm, reaching out with her free hand to shake his.

'Well then – I'm Aidyn Weasley; I like dragons, snakes and playing chess; my favorite instrument is the violin and I hate the color pink. And you?'

'Um – I'm Hadrian Hart; I like horses and riding; uh – I don't have a favorite instru-instru… and I hate pink too.' Hadrian answered hesitantly, blinking at her; Aidyn gave him a wide smile as she released his hand.

'See – now we're not strangers anymore!' Hadrian only blinked at her for a moment, before he smiled back at her, giggling slightly as he pulled his scarf down a little. Aidyn held up her ball and he nodded his head, the two running to a more open area as the bounced it back and forth between them. They didn't play for long till a voice called out for Aidyn, the little girl pausing for a moment as she saw her father walking off the path towards her.

'That's my daddy – come on, he's really nice.' Aidyn took Hadrian by the hand and began dragging him towards the redhead walking towards them. Ron looked down at his daughter with a stern face, hands on his hips.

'What did I tell you? I asked you to stay where I could see you, Aidyn.' The little blond only gave him a childish grin, still holding on to the younger boy's hand.

'Daddy – this is Hadrian, he's my new friend.' Ron glanced to the little boy Aidyn was introducing, giving him a soft smile as a small hand waved up at him nervously; the redhead gave him a tender nod, before looking to his daughter again.

'Well I'm glad you have a new friend dear, but that doesn't excuse you for running off like that. Now – I'm sure Hadrian's parents are looking for him, so let's go –'

'Hadrian! There you are! What have I told you about –' Both men froze as they stared eye to eye with each other; Aidyn and Hadrian looked between the two grown men slightly confused as the two adults simply stared at the other.

Draco swallowed past the lump that formed in his throat – he had made a promise to seek out Ron and tell him the truth, but this was sooner then he expected – too soon, perhaps. Ron could only stare blankly at the blond standing in front of him – why; after proclaiming that he'd move on and finally believing he could do it, did the other man have to appear again. Without thinking, Ron grabbed his daughter firmly by the hand and began tugging her away.

'Come on, Aidyn – it's time to go home.' Aidyn struggled a little against her father's grip, but remained silent as he began to pull her along; Hadrian shrank back to Draco's side, reaching a tender hand to hang on his coat. The blond stepped forward – he wasn't going to let Ron slip away again, even if he wasn't quite ready to face him.

'Ron – wait! If you could just give me ten minutes to talk, I –'

'Good day to you, Malfoy! I'm sure you and your son would rather enjoy it with_out_ us!'

'Please Ron – just ten minutes, I swear!' Ron wouldn't hear it; Aidyn dug her heels into the ground, successfully pulling her hand from her father's grasp. Before Ron had a chance to recapture her hand, the girl turned around, captured Hadrian by the wrist and quickly ran off with him. Hadrian made a small noise of surprise as the older child dragged him off, ignoring both adult men call out to them as she kept the running.

Both Ron and Draco took off after them, and despite being larger then the two small children, found it difficult to keep up with them and soon lost sight of them around one of the curves of the park. They searched up and down along the path the children had disappeared down, but couldn't find either sign of them.

'Aidyn!'

'Hadrian!' They called out their names, but with neither children answering, both men moved on along the path, hoping to come across them soon. Lurking low among the bushes, Aidyn and Hadrian laid low to the ground, the girl having placed a hand over the younger boy's mouth to keep him quiet; once she was sure both their parents had walked away, she let him go, sitting cross legged as she hugged her ball close to her. Hadrian peeked out of the bush, finding neither the girl's father or his uncle anywhere near them.

'Why did you do that for? My uncle is gonna kill me!' Aidyn didn't answer him, staring blankly at the ground in front of her; Hadrian pouted at her, slapping his hands on the ground at being ignored. Without warning, she stood up to her feet, taking him by the wrist and pulled him up to his feet and began walking them away from the bushes.

'We should keep moving so they don't find us right away.'

'But we're gonna be in sooo much trouble! If uncle tells my mummy, I'm gonna get spanked!' Hadrian whined, but Aidyn didn't seem to take notice of the complain; the brunet sulked at her, whining and stomping his feet as he let her drag him around the park to various hiding places.

'… I want my daddy to be happy.' Hadrian stopped his false tears, blinking at the girl walking in front him; Aidyn didn't look back at him, still not stopping as she dragged them to yet another hiding spot.

'My daddy was never happy, even if he smiles, that's why – I want him to be happy.' He didn't quite understand what the blond girl was saying, but for some reason, Hadrian didn't feel like complaining any more and silently followed Aidyn around till she decided on a hiding spot and stopped.

**-8-**

They had searched up and down, left and right but neither men had spotted hair nor hide of either children; Draco let out a sigh as he yanked his fingers through his hair – he really had to stop that habit, he'd lose all his hair before reaching forty. He paused a moment to glance at the redhead a few feet aside of him, scouting out the other end of the park; this was not exactly the kind of situation he'd expect to be in to have this time with Ron. He had opened his mouth several times in attempt to talk to the redhead, but nothing could come out – and he highly doubt the other would willingly start a conversation with him.

'Shit… this would've been faster if we'd split up, you know.' Ron grumbled at him; Draco didn't flinch, turning his gaze in the other direction.

'She was the one who ran off with Hadrian – it would be better if we found them together.' He replied plainly; Ron only huffed, before moving on to search another location, Draco trailing after him. A sigh escaped the blond as he gathered his thoughts together and took in several deep breaths – it was now or never, while he had the other's attention and not wanting to punch his lights out.

'Ron – please, just listen to me; I'm not asking you to speak to me, but – hear me out? I promise after that, I won't bother you anymore.' The redhead glared at him from the corner of his eyes, but gave a somewhat affirmed grunt before continuing with the search for the two missing children; Draco took in another huge breath, before he began.

'About seven years ago, what I had said to you back then… I lied.' For a small fraction of a second, Ron felt his heart skip a beat before his rational side kicked it silent, not daring to glance at the man searching behind him.

'Status, wealth, convenience – you were right – I don't give a fuck about them, but I… I had no choice – I had to marry Anabel.'

'Bloody wonderful and all, but how does this fit _us_ into the picture? You were pretty convincing to me back then.' Ron spat out bitterly, trying to cover up the painful beating of his heart; Draco stopped searching, turning to face the other man standing with his back to him.

'I – I just didn't want anything to happen to you; I thought I was protecting you, but I – all I did was hurt you.'

'Breaking your lover's heart is protecting them? Is that a quark of yours or a Malfoy tradition?' The redhead turned to face for the first time since they started this search; bright blue eyes were strung with pain and anger. Draco gazed at him sadly, shaking his head.

'No, I – god, I was stupid. I should've been honest with you from the start, but I just – I was so scared at the time, I panicked.'

'Panicked? Why should you've been scared? You and Anabel seem to be doing well – I mean, you have a son and all.'

'Hadrian… is not my son.' Draco confessed; Ron paused a moment as he stared slightly surprised at the other man. It took him a minute or two to completely process the information before he was able to find his voice again.

'He's – not your son? But the news…'

'Ron – Anabel and I have never touched, much less share the same room.'

'But then, if he's not yours – who's the real father?'

'Who do you think?' It shouldn't have taken Ron as long as it did to realise the only man who could ever possibly be Hadrian's father, but it had been so long since he even thought about Anabel and Jason ever since Aidyn was born. The redhead paced a little, combing his bangs back as he waited for the information to sink in fully, before stopping to face the blond.

'Then why did you marry Anabel? Why did you take her if you were just going to let Anabel and Jason be together anyways?' Draco only stared at him, before pulling back his coat to reach into his back pant pocket; he pulled out a thin, black wallet, flipping it open.

'Do you remember what Jason looked like?' It was an odd question; Ron shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.

'Somewhat… why?' The blond grimaced as he handed the other his wallet; the redhead took it hesitantly, glancing at what he assumed was a family photo of Anabel and Jason with their son. A loud gasp escaped him, a hand going over his mouth as he stared wide eyed at the disfigured features of the man in the picture. He only vaguely remembered what the sandy haired man had looked like since it had been so long, but he could definitely see a difference compared to seven years ago. He handed the wallet back to Draco, somewhat distraught and curious at the same time as to what happened to the gardener.

'Is that – really him?' Ron asked tentatively; the blond nodded his head as he took the wallet back, gazing down bitterly at the photo.

'My – _father_ found out about them; this was his doing.' Draco spat before flipping it shut and shoved it back into his pocket; Ron could only stare in disbelief, a hand over his mouth. He couldn't even begin to imagine what the senior Malfoy had done that would leave scars like that on Jason's face; he didn't even want to imagine what the rest of his body had to look like.

'He almost killed Jason, and threatened to let him die if we didn't agree to the engagement. Ron – Anabel and I really didn't have a choice, we had to get married.'

'Why didn't you just tell me?' He was surprised at how soft the other's tone was as he asked the question; Draco only glanced at him for a moment, before ducking his gaze down to the ground, folding his arms across his chest.

'Because I knew you wouldn't leave me, Ron – you have no idea how fucking scared I was. If he knew about you, father would have killed you; you wouldn't have a second chance like Jason did – I just – I couldn't live with that.' Ron could only stare at him and he swore he could see the blond shaking a little; while he gave credit for Draco being a really good actor, even he couldn't pull off something like this. The years of guilt he had to deal with, the constant threat of someone's death hanging over his head – Ron could see that the other suffered just as much as he had, if not more these past seven years. He was about to reach a hand out for the blond, when Draco stepped back, unfolding his arms and quickly wiped away at his eyes.

'I just – wanted to tell you that; its – its all right if can't forgive me and don't ever want to speak to me again.' He admitted, slowly turning around and restart their search again; Ron lingered a moment as he watched the other's back. Was he ready to forgive the man? The aching in his heart was certainly telling him so.

'I promise after this, I won't ever bother you again – I'm sure… you and your wife are very happy together.' Ron froze at the statement, staring slightly surprised at Draco before he realised that the blond didn't know. He had never told him, and for the past seven years had never planned to – least till now. In an instant, Ron reached out for the shorter man's wrist, stopping him from walking any further.

'Draco, wait! Aidyn… doesn't have a mother.' The blond paused as he blinked over his shoulder, before he gave the redhead a sympathetic look.

'Oh – oh I'm sorry, Ron. I didn't mean to bring something bad up.'

'No, listen to me – I mean, she _literally_ doesn't have a mother.' He tried to explain; Draco only stared at him confused, unsure of what Ron was trying to say. A slight blush crawled across the redhead's nose, as he turned his gaze downwards.

'I – I don't think I quite understand…'

'I… I'm her mother – I was the one who gave birth to her.' The blush deepened; Draco could only stare at him, trying to piece together the words the other man was saying.

'But then – I – she's not…' Ron took in a deep breath as he turned his eyes to face pale grey ones.

'She's… your daughter, Draco. _Our_ daughter…'

**----- Chapter Seven -----**


	8. Chapter 8

Wee – guess what? You get a long update this time! 6 pages worth in word – have fun!

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

**----- ****Chapter Eight**** -----**

It seemed oddly deafening the silence, as if the world had faded into oblivion and all that was left was just him, his thoughts and the man standing in front of him. Draco could only stare at the redhead, not sure if he fully comprehended the two simple words he just heard. The blush on Ron's face rivaled the color of his hair – it was always an embarrassing matter to him calling himself Aidyn's "mother". After several minutes of silence, Draco managed to find his voice, still unsure if he believed what the other was saying.

'She's… my daughter…?'

'I know it sounds crazy, but she is. I… they don't know how it happened yet, or if it will happen again, but – Aidyn is our daughter, Draco.' Ron slowly released the wrist in his grasp, letting it slowly fall back to the blond's side; Draco could only continue to stare at him, but he could feel his heart beating in his ears – he _did_ have a family of his own and the thought was almost…

'You… really serious about this?' He asked tentatively; Ron nodded his head, tilting his gaze to the ground. He was startled by the gentle hand on his shoulder, lifting his eyes off from the ground to stare into pale grey ones – there was just a shimmer of tears lingering in them. Hesitantly, Ron reached a hand for the one on his shoulder, feeling his heart relieve at the small contact; Draco offered him a small smile, the redhead biting down on his lip slightly before one found its way to his face.

'Dad!' Both men turned their heads to the direction of the voice, seeing Hadrian running towards them, Aidyn following slowly after him. Draco pulled his hand back as he felt Ron release him, crossing his arms over his chest as the little boy slowed to a halt in front of him, looking up at him with wide, sorrowful puppy eyes.

'You don't have to give me that look, Hadrian – it's not your fault if she dragged you off.'

'I'm sorry dad…' Draco smiled softly at the little boy, gently patting him on the head.

'You don't have to call me that, sport. It's all right – he knows I'm just your uncle.' Hadrian blinked up at him, staring puzzled between the two men as they gazed at each other; he suddenly pulled his scarf up over his nose, ducking his head down. He didn't quite understand why, but he felt extremely happy for his uncle right now.

Aidyn finally caught up with them, Ron giving her a nagging glance as he gently pinched her by the ear, the little girl wincing as he scolded her.

'What have I told you about running off like that! Don't ever do that again – you have any idea how much you worried me?' Aidyn only winced, rubbing her ear as her father released her; she gave him a huge pout, strutting out her bottom lip as she stared up at him. Ron only crossed his arms over his chest, but inwardly he was glad to see that Aidyn seemed to have returned to normal if she was pulling out a pout like that. He let out a sigh before turning to face Draco.

'I'm sorry about that – as you can see, she's a real troublemaker.'

'She's a lot like someone I know.' Draco only replied back; Ron gave him a soft a smile, as he reached to take her around the shoulder.

'She's more like her father then you think.' The two men only gazed at each other tenderly, Aidyn reaching for her father's hand around her shoulder as she smiled up at them. Hadrian reached out for Draco's arm, gently tugging on him to get his attention, the fair-haired man glancing down at him.

'Uncle Draco, can we go home now? I'm tired.' Draco smiled at him, nodding his head as he patted the boy on the shoulder.

'It is a bit late, isn't it? I'm sure your mummy's got to be wondering where we are.' Hadrian nodded his head slowly, tenderly clinging to the blond's arm as he snuggled his face against him. Draco sighed before glancing to Ron with an apologetic smile.

'Sorry – guess I need to get this little one home.'

'It's fine, don't worry about it. Aidyn and I should be getting anyways.' Ron excused; the two men lingered a moment longer than they should have, before slowly turning around and head back to their respective homes. Draco stopped a moment, glancing over his shoulder.

'We will – see each other again… right?' He asked hesitantly; the redhead paused as he gazed back at him with a blank look, before a smile came to his face.

'If you can spare the time, then I guess we will.' The blond gave him a hopeful smile, feeling Hadrian's impatience as the little boy tugged at his sleeve, urging him to move; Draco gave Ron one last look before walking off with his nephew in the other direction, bidding a quick goodbye to the redhead and his daughter. Ron waved briefly before taking Aidyn by the hand and began walking them out of the park. The little blond swung their hands as they walked, humming a cheery tune as they headed home. He smiled down at the small child, eyes falling to the pendant hanging around her neck; perhaps when they got home, he'd tell her the real story behind it and who her other father was – considering she just met him. They stopped at the cross walk, Aidyn idly glancing around as she swayed back and forth on her feet while they waited on the light to change; Ron had to snicker – perhaps his brother was right, Aidyn was the cutest in the family.

'Hadrian's uncle was really nice.' She noted randomly; Ron blinked at her for a moment, before seeing the light had changed, ushering them across the street.

'Yes, he's a nice man.'

'… You seem to like him better now.' Ron glanced at her puzzlingly, starting to a feel a bit uncertain where she was going with this conversation.

'Well, I – I never really stopped liking him, I guess…' Aidyn stopped walking, glancing up at him with her large, blue eyes knowingly; he was slightly surprised by the expression and had a feeling that perhaps he didn't really need to explain who her father was.

'So we will get to see him again, right?' She asked endearingly; the redhead smiled, gently grabbing her around the shoulder and mussing up her hair; she was more observant than he gave credit to for a child her age, and he couldn't help feel that it was more of a blessing then a nuisance for Aidyn to be so aware of things around her. Walking hand in hand and a smile on their faces, Ron was feeling better then he ever had, even since this morning; however, it still lurked – that lingering doubt and bitterness that he was just being played the fool again, but his heart wouldn't hear it. He wasn't sure what the outcome of this would be, or if his heart would be torn again, but he was willing to take the risk, even the smallest chance, that Draco still loved him and that everything he had said just now was the truth and nothing less.

**-8-**

'We're back.' Draco called out softly as he eased the door carefully behind him, trying his best not to disturb the small child sleeping on his back. Anabel glance up from the small couch, a smile coming to face when she saw her son sleeping soundly on the blond's back; she stood up to her feet, walking over to him to relieve Draco of the extra weight. Hadrian whined a little in his sleep at being jostled, but soon settled as he snuggled his face against his mother's shoulder.

'You must've done a lot of things today – he's not usually this tired.' Anabel commented, tenderly petting messy, soft brown hair. Draco only laughed a little.

'He got his run around; thankfully I didn't have to expend much energy in the process.' He answered; Anabel eyed him curiously before she smiled widely at him, leaning over to give him a family peck on the cheek.

'You seem to be a better mood today.'

'I do? What – am I usually a grouch?' He blinked, but the brunette only giggled and shook her head, before walking across the small cabin space towards the stairs to put the small child in her arms to bed. Draco only blinked after her slightly confused, but merely shrugged it off, as he moved to take his winter coat off and hung it on the wooden rack by the door. He sighed softly as he took an appreciative glance around the cottage; he had only provided the bases and the exterior, but Anabel and Jason had been the ones who gussied up the inside and made it feel homely. Draco sighed, envious of the environment he never got to experience or live in while growing up, but at the same time felt it lucky for Hadrian to be brought up in a warm and loving surrounding.

Hearing Anabel's footsteps coming softly down the stairs jolted him from his day dream, straightening out his clothing before moving to sit down on the small couch, the young woman joining. The smile was still on her face, Draco blinking curiously at her.

'Well? You didn't really answer my question.'

'Something good must've happened while you were out. Not to say that you're a grouch, but you do seem happier then usual, Draco.' Anabel merely replied; Draco blinked at her blankly, before a tender smile spread across his face. He wondered if he should tell her – tell her that he met Ron at the park, how he had told the redhead the truth and the most unbelievable part of it all – he had a daughter. Unsure of where to begin, he decided to start from Hadrian looking for the ducks in the vacant pond and worked his way from there. He hesitated a little when he got the subject about Aidyn, but felt it would've been wrong of him to keep something like that from Anabel who he had come to love like a sister. Anabel was almost in tears when Draco told her he and Ron had a daughter, tenderly taking his hand with hers.

'Oh Draco – that's wonderful; I can't believe we've been keeping you away from her all this time. I'm sorry.'

'Don't be daft – if Ron had wanted me to know sooner, he would've told me seven years ago,' He sighed, drawing his hand back from the woman's grasp, leaning forward on his knees. 'But it's my fault – I never gave him a reason to tell me we had a child together. So I don't really blame him for keeping it a secret.' Anabel reached a gentle hand out for his shoulder; the radio was playing a mellow tune filling in the warming silence between them. A soft click, a few beeps and a low sound of a card being swiped through the lock adverted their attention to the door, a tender smile coming to the young woman's face.

'Sounds like Jason is home.' Anabel stood up to her feet as the door opened inwardly, the sandy-haired man stepping in as he shut it silently behind him. Anabel greeted him with a small kiss, a tender smile coming to Jason's face as he reached his arms to embrace. Draco cleared his throat to make sure the other knew he was there – he'd rather not be intruding on any intimacy between them. Seeing that they were not alone, Jason settled for giving Anabel a light peck on the cheek, before releasing her from his grasp; he stared at the blond with a teasing grin.

'Really – I know you're Hadrian's uncle and all, but privacy is a virtue.' Anabel only nudged him in the side while Draco shook his head, standing up to his feet as he made a motion of leaving.

'Fine, fine – I get it; I'm interrupting your love life. I shall take my leave.' Draco teased back, earning a light punch in the arm from the other man.

'Honestly – it's a wonder anyone can live with you at all.' He sighed; the blond only smiled, before taking a seat in the arm chair placed across the couch, allowing Anabel and Jason to sit together on the small sofa. They began to chat idly about their day, Draco briefly mentioning his meeting with Ron earlier, and discovering he had a blood family of his own. A mixture of surprise and unease crossed Jason's face at the news, reaching his arm around Anabel's shoulder.

'Wow, that's just – wow.'

'I'm still having a hard time believing it myself; I mean – I have a daughter, a blood daughter.' Draco exclaimed, still unable to register the fact he and Ron had a child together. Anabel and Jason glanced at each other, a tender smile coming to both of their faces; perhaps the blond still had a chance for happiness in his life after all.

'Did you think he'll tell her? That you're Aidyn's father?' Anabel asked excitingly; Draco's mouth hung open for a moment, before he closed it, scratching the back of his head, a sudden look of doubt worried the young woman.

'I-I don't know if I want her to know just yet; I'm not… I've done a lot of terrible things…' Jason scoffed loudly, rolling his eyes as he shook his head, ignoring the nudge in his side from Anabel.

'Please – what's the worse you've done, huh? Name one thing.' He challenged; Draco remained silent as he leaned his elbows on his knees, closing his eyes for a brief moment.

'… I broke his heart…'

'Oh come on, that's not –'

'I knew what he's been through in the past before me, and I torn him apart just like all those other bastards before me.' He answered without pause; Jason let his mouth hang open for a few minutes, before Anabel gently closed it with her hand. The sandy-haired man pouted at her for the silent tease, but the expression on the young woman's face was not playful. Standing up from her seat, Anabel made her way over to the older man, gently taking his hands with hers, as she knelt down carefully to the floor in front of him.

'Draco – we all make mistakes; you were only doing what you thought was right at the time, but you've realised things are different now,' she reached a hand to tenderly brush aside the stray strands of hair falling over his face.

'You know better now, you have learned from it and have suffered through the consequences for the past seven years. If Ron really didn't want you in your daughter's life, would he really have told you she was yours?' She reasoned, Draco hesitated before silently shaking his head, dim grey eyes gazing into doe brown ones. Anabel gave him a motherly smile, carefully squeezing his hand with hers; Draco couldn't help but let out a sigh as he shook head, glancing away from her.

'Why does everything you say have to make sense?' He teased; the woman only laughed, standing up to her feet as she reached her arms out for a friendly hug. Draco accepted it, whispering a small "Thank you" against her ear.

'It's getting late – I should be heading back to the main house.' The blond claimed after a quick glance at the clock hanging on the opposite wall; Anabel held fast to his wrist, giving him a pleading gaze.

'Stay – there is an extra room, you know. We don't mind if you stay here with us.' She offered, Jason nodding his head as he gave the other man a cheery smile; Draco thanked her, gently removing her hand from his wrist.

'I know, and – thanks for the offer, but I need to spend some time alone… I need – I need to think a bit.' He excused; Anabel only nodded her head, reaching up to give him a light good night peck on the cheek. Jason heaved himself off the couch, reaching his hand out for a goodbye shake, Draco accepting it before he turned towards the door.

'See you in the morning.' He called out.

'Goodnight Draco.' Anabel replied back; he gave the couple one last smile, before heading out the door, stepping out into the cold mid-autumn air. He shivered a little, simply wrapping his outer coat around his shoulders before hiking up towards the manor. Draco lingered outside the doors a little longer, knowing that the inside of this place would seem much colder then the air outside; taking in a deep breath, he heaved the doors open, quickly shutting them as he stepped in to keep the night air out. Pale grey eyes lingered on the small clearing to the homely little cottage sitting out of place in the backyard connected to the large and richly lavished mansion; Anabel's offer had been tempting, but Draco wanted to spend a moment alone. He knew the thoughts that would haunt him, the nightmares that would come and he didn't want to disturb them with it – not in that warm and loving environment. Letting out a deep sigh, he tugged on his coat tighter, before heading up towards the stairs and up to his room for the night.

**-8-**

The water was cold – even colder with the impeding sense of winter coming just around the corner. Ron let out a heavy sigh as he let the water drip down his face; he couldn't believe what had just happened today. Ignoring the reflection staring back at him, the redhead quickly reached for the hand towel hanging on the side of the sink, wiping his face dry, before hanging it back in its place. He turned the light off as he exited the bathroom, reaching a hand to pull the cloth headband off his head that had kept his bangs out of his face; he let out a darling sigh as he spotted Aidyn sitting cross-legged on the couch, a book on her lap.

'Hey – what you got there sweetie?' He asked, making his way over towards where the little girl was sitting; Aidyn didn't even glance up once as she kept her nose buried in the pages. Ron sat down next to his daughter, noticing it was a photo album she was staring at.

'Looking for something, dear?' Aidyn flipped the album back to the beginning – to the very first picture of the day she was born. Ron had to bite his tongue to keep from groaning out loud – now he knew how Ginny felt about pictures right after the twins had been born. Starling blue eyes glanced up at him curiously, a tiny finger pointing to the first picture.

'It's always been just you.' She stated; Ron blinked at her confused as he tried to get what she was trying to say.

'It was – just you, daddy, for as long as I can remember. No one else, no mummy – or another daddy.' Ron only gave her a sad smile as he reached a tender arm around the little girl's shoulder, glancing through the photo album with her as she pointed out all the pictures of just the two of them. Ron caught himself wondering how different it would look if Draco had been in some of those photos with them – how different their world would be if he had been there. Without warning, Aidyn closed the album, glancing up at her father with wide, innocent childish eyes.

'The man we bumped into today – Draco? We will get to see him again, right?' She asked, a slight twinge of fear gracing her voice as she spoke; Ron gave her an endearing smile, giving her shoulder a slight squeeze.

'Of course, sweetie; there's no way he can stay away after today.' He joked lightly, seeing that glowing smile come to her face. Aidyn moved to sit on her knees, reaching her arms out to give Ron a hug around the neck, the redhead embracing her back. He set the album aside on the table, gently patting her on the head.

'All right – time for bed, little miss.'

'I'm not sleepy!'

'You will be in five seconds – now, off to bed with you.' Aidyn sulked a little, but got up from the couch nonetheless and headed towards her room. She stopped a moment, before turning around and raced back to her father, giving him a quick goodnight kiss on the cheek. Ron gave her a kiss back, before Aidyn raced back to her room, doing a quick wave before closing her door; Ron sighed contently as he watched her door close with a soft click. He glanced down at the closed album sitting on the table in front of him, his mind wondering away with him for a moment, before he stood up to his feet; picking it up in one motion, he paused for a moment, before moving to put it back on the shelf.

If everything Draco had said was true – if the other man really still loved him after all this time – perhaps, he'd have to make new memories with the blond; an unease smile came to Ron's face. He was still scared – scared that he was walking into another trap, that he was only setting himself up for another fall, only this time he knew if it happened, he'd never be able to pull himself out of it again. Yet it was there – small and waiting – the hope that he had been clinging to for so long, a fight he had not quite given up just yet, no matter how many times he had been beaten to the ground. He walked over to the window of his room, glancing through the curtains as he gazed up at the night sky; the stars were sparkling.

'… God _please_ tell me I know what I'm doing is right…'

**----- Chapter Eight -----**


	9. Chapter 9

Yes, I know - I finally got off my lazy ass and started writing again - I can safely say that I've FINALLY gotten over my road block and I'm finally starting to get to the point in the stories where I actually know what's gonna happen and where it's gonna go, so yay - hopefully I'll be updating more frequently again. Enjoy.

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

* * *

**----- Chapter Nine -----**

Draco paced along the dirt path, ignoring the few passing odd glances at him at his behavior; he had been anxious all morning which had somehow morphed into panic when he realised that neither him or Ron had a way of contacting each other – provided the other really did still want to see him. An antsy sigh escaped the blond as he folded his hands together in a prayer motion, gently tapping them against his chin; this park was the only place he could think of in hopes of bumping into the redhead again, but he no clue how often the other man came out here with his daughter, and with the on coming of winter there was a chance he might not see Ron and Aidyn till warmer weathers. Draco sighed as he closed his eyes, trying to calm himself down – he _had_ to see Ron again; it was beginning to amaze him that he even managed to last seven years without breaking down, but perhaps it was the prospect of work that had kept him occupied. Moon grey eyes opened slowly, gazing up the path, then down the path only seeing a few passer-bys walking through the park; he glanced down at his watch – the lunch hour would be over soon and he was almost tempted to skip the rest of work today to wait for the redhead, but he knew Evelyn would hunt him down and drag him back to the office.

He closed his eyes again, forcing the tears to stop before they could come; he could feel his doubts – his fears surfacing from the depths of his mind. He could understand if Ron was still leery of opening his heart back up to him, but what if the other didn't even want to give him a chance at all? What if yesterday's encounter was just a spur of the moment – perhaps Ron hadn't intentionally meant to tell Draco Aidyn was their daughter; perhaps he was deluding himself by thinking Ron would willing let him back into his life – into their daughter's life.

'Good god, I think I'm going to be sick…' He groaned to himself, pressing his palms against his forehead as he stared down at the ground.

'You know they say stress from nervousness could knock a few years off your life span.' Draco let out a breathe of relief as his eye lids fell shut, gently wiping at the subtle tears that were threatening to spill, before turning around to face the redhead standing behind him. Ron stood emotionless, his hands buried in his coat pockets, clear blue eyes staring blankly at the shorter man in front of him; Draco tried not choke as he cleared his throat, taking a quick glance to noticed that the other was alone.

'Aidyn not with you today?'

'It's 12:45 Thursday, Malfoy – she's at school.' Ron answered plainly; Draco massaged his temples as he shook his head at himself – of course Aidyn wouldn't be here right now and he couldn't help but feel a bit dumb at forgetting that factor.

Ron felt his heart ache slightly at the self-doubt the blond was showing, but he still kept his guard up, still afraid of letting the other man back in. He had been rather surprised to see the blond here in the park again and had spent almost more then five minutes simply standing on the path watching the other, as if trying to confirm he wasn't dreaming. Pale grey eyes gazed deeply into starling blue and Ron could see it – the same sort of shine that Draco always had whenever their eyes met, with just a tint of fear clouding them.

A heavy sigh escaped the redhead, reaching his hand out of his pocket to comb through his bangs; he had promised himself he wouldn't break down in front of the other man. He felt like he had to prove something – that he could be strong without Draco by his side, that he could stand to be alone should the other walk out on him again… but he wasn't. It was taking every strength of rationality he had to keep him from embracing the shorter man and never letting him go again.

'I'm rather – surprised, to see you here again – in this park.' Ron managed to say, trying to ease some of the tension in his shoulders and the air between them. Draco opened his mouth like he knew exactly what to say, but nothing came out as he just simply stared with his mouth hanging open slightly, before finding his voice again.

'I – I couldn't think of anywhere else… I mean – after yesterday… god.' The blond buried his face his palms for a brief moment, before turning his gaze up to the sky; Ron simply held his arms crossed his chest as he watched the other man. Draco turned his gaze back to the redhead, scratching the back of his head.

'I can't believe it took till midnight to realise I didn't know how to contact you after yesterday, or… gave you a way to contact me.'

'Well perhaps I hadn't intended to give you any chance of contacting me.'

'You don't believe me, do you?'

'I believe what you said about Jason and Anabel – I suppose even you aren't so heartless to tear two _other_ people apart from each other.' Draco flinched inwardly at the bitter tone, ducking his glance down to the ground; he should've expected this, yet he had dared to hope that Ron would open his heart, just a little and give him another chance. Perhaps he really didn't deserve that chance; Draco took in a deep breath as he put a hand over his mouth, not daring to meet the other's eyes.

'I just thought…' He began, suddenly hesitating as a fear struck him, quickly shaking his head before he gazed eye to eye with Ron – the redhead still standing stiff and emotionless.

'I'm just glad… you seem to be doing fine – you and Aidyn.' Ron didn't say anything as he simply just stared at the other man; Draco shook his head, before moving to turn away from him.

'I'm sorry, and… thank you – for telling me about Aidyn; as I promised before, I won't ever bother you again.' Draco gave one last glance over his shoulder towards the other man, searching for any change, any sort of sign in the redhead's body language, but Ron simply stood as he was – bright blue eyes staring blankly at him. Draco sighed silently to himself, reaching a hand to wipe at his eye as he turned his back to the other man and slowly began walking away; perhaps as a Malfoy it was his fate to die alone and miserable.

Ron stood and watched as the other began to walk away from him; while the outside of him seemed calm and unaffected by this, his heart and mind were waging war on each other. His stubbornness refused to let him run after Draco – his pride was screaming at him that he was stronger than that – but his heart was aching for warmth, for the love that he had only found in the blond. As the other's back seemed to pace further and further away, he was struck by some age-old words he had been told years ago before he and Draco started dating.

'_Pride is a dangerous thing, you know? It can blind us and sometimes we lose the very thing most precious to us before we even realised we had it.'_

His body seemed to move on its own, being propelled forward by the emotions in his heart, yet at the same time his feet were weighed down by his fears making the short distance between him and the man walking in front of him longer. The blond seemed so far away even as he reached his arms out, knowing that the man was closer then his mind perceived him to be.

Draco froze as he felt the redhead embrace him around the shoulders, feeling Ron bury his face against the back of his shoulder. He closed his eyes in slight relief, trying hard to keep the tears from coming as he felt the other's arms tighten around him.

'… you… are you a bloody idiot?!' Ron managed out, keeping his face buried against the blond. Draco slowly turned himself around to face the taller man, cautiously reaching a hand out to brush aside flaming red locks; his hair was not as smooth as it used to be, but it was still soft to the touch. Ron gazed at him with a sad smile, shaking a little as he felt Draco take his face in his hands, seeing the blond bite his lower lip as a small smile found its way to pointed features.

'I've missed you so much!' Draco choked out as he slowly reached his arms around the other's neck, burying his face against the crook of the redhead's neck; Ron hesitated as he reached his arms around the slender waist, merely nodding his head as he held the blond close to him. The two men held each other that way for what seemed an eternity, ignorant of the stares and disapproval they were getting from people passing through the park. They finally pulled apart after several minutes, grey gazing into blue as they reluctantly released the other, already craving the warmth of the other's touch.

'I suppose it be too presumption of me to ask if you, well – would like to join me for lunch?' Draco asked nervously, gazing hopefully up at the gentle face gazing back at him; the corners of Ron's mouth tugged into a small smile.

'Long as you're paying…' He began with a half tease, anxious on how the other would react; but Draco only smiled, holding his hand out to lead the way.

'Of course – my treat, as always.' The two men laughed softly at each other, before walking out of the park in silence, only speaking to each other again when deciding on where to settle for lunch; once they had decided, both men had to laugh at themselves on their choice. It was the same restaurant where they had bumped into each that night for the first time in seven years. They were seated and given their menus, before deciding on a meal and then left with the chatter from other tables and their silence.

Ron shifted in his seat a bit as he glanced around the restaurant, while Draco sat still with his hands folded across the table, eyes staring at everything but the man sitting in front of him. Neither knew what to say, neither knew where to begin or even what questions to ask the other; Draco was afraid of asking about their daughter, Aidyn, not wanting to feel like he trying to push his way into her life, but the curiosity was still there.

'So, um… how's – Anabel doing?' Ron managed to ask after clearing his throat; the blond looked at him in slight surprise, before clearing his throat as he thought of what to say.

'She's – doing all right; well, as fine as she can be given the current arrangements.' He answered with a bitter tone; Ron only hummed in response. It took a bit of silence, a few awkward words here and there and the food arriving before the conversation between them eased a bit, the words flowing more naturally as the time stretched on. Near the end of their meals, the two were joking, laughing with each other, almost as if they hadn't been separated at all for seven years.

'It seems… a bit odd, having you here, sitting in front of me like this.' Draco admitted hesitantly, absent-mindedly fiddling with the golden band around his finger; Ron gave him a half smile as he stared down at his plate.

'Yeah, well – don't think this means anything; I'm willing to give you another chance as a friend, all right? Nothing more.' Draco gave him a sad smile, folding his hands to stop playing with the ring as he slowly nodded his head.

'I understand – it's better then I was hoping to say the least.' He answered with a soft tone; Ron let out a silent sigh to the small dejection in the other man's posture. He wasn't ready to let the blond invade his heart again – not yet, no matter how much it was screaming at him to open back up to Draco. Barely another word passed between them when a sudden ringing startled them both; Draco rolled his eyes as he reached into his coat pocket hanging off the back of his chair – he didn't need to look who was calling him, he knew already.

'Excuse me.' Ron merely nodded his head as the blond answered his phone, leaning back in his chair.

'What is it, Evelyn?'

'_If you are quite done lingering about with lunch, mind getting your arse back to this office right this instant!'_ Draco sighed as he shook his head.

'I'm with someone right now and –'

'_And you have a meeting starting in ten minutes – which I swear if you do not get your arse here in five minutes, I will personally drag you back here. I am not covering for you __**again**__!'_ She stated, her tone coming out clean and sharp; Draco let out a frustrated sigh gently rubbing his forehead. He'd really like to spend more time with Ron right now, but he knew Evelyn would be true to her word and hunt him down if he didn't return to the office soon – and she somehow _always_ managed to find him.

'Fine, I'll be there soon.' He heard her miff in approval, before hanging up her end of the line, the receiver seeming loud against his ear that he flinched a little. Draco sighed, before hanging up the phone, muttering under his breath; Ron glanced at him somewhat curiously.

'Sorry – is this keeping you from work?'

'No, I've been keeping myself here, could care less about what's waiting for me, but well…' Draco answered as he gazed eye to eye with the redhead, before letting out a sigh and shaking his head. Ron couldn't help the small smile that spread across his lips at the other's disappointment. Draco reached to put his phone away, flagging down a waiter to ask for the bill.

'I'm sorry, Ron – perhaps next time I'll stay around longer.'

'I'll hold you to that.' Ron answered without thinking; Draco looked at him slightly surprised, before a timid smile came to his face, giving the other man a nod. Once the check was paid and done with, both men gathered up their coats and headed out of the restaurant. Draco stopped them briefly as the thought struck him, reaching into his inner pocket for a pen and pulling out a small card.

'Wait – here take this,' Ron watched the blond as he quickly scribbled something on the back of the card, holding it out to him. 'Incase you – you want to contact me.'

Draco explained hesitantly; Ron took the card from his hand, glancing down at the neatly written number on the back, before turning it over. He had to laugh a little.

'Has you business hours right on it.'

'That's not the number I want you to use; the one I just wrote down, no one knows about it. Not even my head secretary knows it and she knows every possible way of contacting me.' Ron flipped the card back over, staring at the number written neatly in dark blue ink, before glancing up at the other man with a small smile. Draco gave him a nervous shrug, holding his hand out towards the redhead.

'I – I'm not expecting anything, but if – if you want to get together some other time – as friends, then – I'd prefer if you used that number.' He explained; Ron glanced at the card one last time, before reaching his hand out to shake the other man's.

'I'll keep that in mind.' The two lingered a little longer then they should have, before Draco cleared his throat, withdrawing his hand.

'I should be going, or Evelyn's going to kill me.' Ron only nodded in response; Draco gave him a nod goodbye, before stepping around him to head back to work. He only paused for a moment, staring slightly surprised at the air in front of him as these words reached his ears.

'See you later then, Malfoy.' He glanced over his shoulder as he kept walking, seeing Ron give him a small wave before walking off in the other direction. He shouldn't have been that happy over a simple parting, but hearing those words – the fact that Ron said it, he was hoping it meant they would see each other again. Draco turned his gaze to the front, a smile coming to his face as he walked on forward; he didn't care if it took years to win back Ron's heart, he was willing to wait however long was needed for the other to heal and trust him again. Just being able to see his face again and to be able to talk to him on a friendly term was more then enough for him.

**-8-**

He stared down at the card in his fingers, flipping it over and over again, staring at the neatly printed blue ink on the back. Ron let out a sigh before tossing his head back to rest against the back of the couch, slouching forward in his seat a little; he still had doubts, hesitation, but even he had to admit the relief, the ease in his heart every time he thought about what Draco had said. He lifted the card to his face, gazing at the number the blond had written in dark blue ink; he had lost count of how many times he had almost grabbed the phone and attempted to dial the number, only to stop halfway and hang up before he even finished punching in the numbers. What was he so afraid of anyways – it was not like the other was expecting him to jump right back into a relationship; he had already said so himself he wasn't expecting it. Ron sat up, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees as he stared at the card; the dejection in the blond's voice almost had him break down right there and then. He rested his forehead against his hand, closing his eyes as he shook his head. _No – not yet; I'm not ready to let him in again…_

He glanced over to the phone sitting on the side table next to the couch, biting down on his lower lip, before slowly crawling over to it. He hesitated with his hand hovering over the receiver, shakily picking it up as blue eyes stared blankly at the screen. His thumb skimmed over the numbers, before he let out a defeated sigh – he really couldn't call him, no matter how much he desperately wanted to see Draco again.

'Da-aa-dd-dy~!' Ron near jumped out of his skin as he felt a pair of arms embrace him from behind, glancing over his shoulder to see a smug little grin on Aidyn's face as she greeted him. Ron gave her a stern glance, getting up the sofa to chase after her as the little girl quickly removed her arms and ran off to her room. He managed to catch her around the waist, the girl squealing as her father tickled her sides, trying to squirm free.

'You little sneak! You'll pay for that!' Aidyn squealed in glee, trying to wriggle free from her father's tickling, before Ron stopped, simply hugging the girl around the shoulders while he waited for her to stop laughing. The fair-haired child smiled up at him, turning around to give him a hug around the waist, Ron gently patting her head.

'Surprised to see you home early today, Ron.' Luna commented, watching the pair with a soft smile; Ron looked over his shoulder to the woman, letting Aidyn go as he gave Luna a small wave.

'Yeah, I decided to take the afternoon off, so I came back home right after lunch. Sorry – I didn't mean to leave you to pick up Aidyn when I was here.' Luna only smiled, putting a finger to her lips.

'I don't mind – I love Aidyn and besides, it looks like you had your mind occupied with something.' Ron only gave her a nervous smile, rubbing the back of his neck; that was the only thing he minded about Luna – she was undoubtedly observant and sharp. Aidyn ran over to give the woman a quick hug goodbye, Luna patting her on the head saying she'd come by again tomorrow, before heading out the door. Ron said a quick farewell before wondering back to the couch, picking up the receiver before sitting down; Aidyn bounced over to his side, landing on her knees as she jumped onto the cushions, ignoring the nagging glare her father was giving her.

'So – how was school, dear?'

'It was fine – we got to go on a field trip today!' The girl mentioned excitingly, Ron giving her a tender smile.

'Is that right? Where did you go today?'

'We went to an art museum! And we had to pick one piece we liked and write about it! Wanna see the picture I chose?' Ron nodded his head, Aidyn immediately crawling off the couch to pick her bag off the floor, scouring through it before pulling out a folder, opening it up to pull out a printed photo. She dropped her bag and folder to the floor, before racing back to her father, plopping down on the couch as she held out the picture to him.

'That's the one I chose! My teacher said I picked a hard one to write about it.' Ron took the paper from her hands, staring at slight surprise at the painting before a soft smile came to his face.

'Any reasons why you picked this one, sweetie?'

'I like it – no one else in our class liked it, but I did. I thought it was really good.' She explained with a defensive pout; Ron had to laugh as he gazed back at the photo – he knew this painting, he'd be lying if he said he didn't. It was "Soul" by none other then Nymphadora Tonks, and the very first painting that revealed to him the real Draco Malfoy for the first time. He was slightly surprised that painting was still on display considering it was not her most "professional" piece of work in her career, but it didn't surprise him at all that Aidyn would chose this one. Ron had to laugh at how much Aidyn resembled Draco; he looked over to the little girl gazing up at him expectantly.

'I like this one too, sweetie. I think you picked a good painting as well.' Aidyn gave him a wide smile, taking the paper back from him, running over to put it back into the folder, which she put back into her school bag, then raced back to sit next to him. Ron ruffled his fingers through her hair, earning a slight laugh from the small child as Aidyn batted at his hands.

'Daddy – when will we get to see Draco again?' Starling blue eyes looked surprised into curious ones of the same colour; the question caught him off guard, staring guiltily at the phone and card resting on the coffee table in front of him. What was he so afraid of – they would only be getting together as friends, so why did he have to hesitate to call. Aidyn glanced up at her father curiously, tilting her head to the side as she watched his face; she could tell he was troubled, but she was unsure of how to fix it.

'Can't we see him again? I like him – he's nice.' Ron only gazed at her softly, gently patting her on the head.

'Go do your homework, Aidyn.' The little girl only looked up at him blankly, but nodded her head as she climbed off the couch, going over to pick up her bag from the floor and headed towards her room. Ron watched as she left without so much as a complaint, feeling a bit guilty; he felt like he was disappointing her by keeping her away from her other father. With a bit of after thought, he reached out for the phone with a steady hand, quickly punching in the numbers on the card, before holding the receiver to his ear. The phone rang; with each steady ringing in his ear, his heart beat increased ever so slightly, soon beating loudly in his ear. After what seemed like an eternity of rings, the phone was finally answered, the voice on the other end was soft and tender – almost ethereal.

'_Hello Ron.'_

'… don't just bloody assume it's me calling, you know.'

'_Not possible – only you know this number; not even Annabel knows this line exists.'_ Ron couldn't help feel his heart burst at those words, feeling the blood rush to his face as he shook his head clear.

'Listen – if… if you're not too busy this weekend, maybe… maybe you'd like to spend time with Aidyn?' the blond was silent on the other end; Ron cleared his throat, quickly adding: 'I mean, she is your daughter after all, and she's kinda eager to meet you; I'm sure you two will get along great – you know she's a lot like you and –'

'_Will – will you be with us?'_ The blond asked tentatively; Ron stared silently into the phone, his mind taking a moment register the question, let alone find the answer to it. He leaned back against the couch, a tender smile coming to his features.

'Yes, I'll be there too.'

'_Don't get me wrong – I'd love to spend time to get to know Aidyn, I just… I want the three of us to spend time together… to – to learn and understand you again…'_ the words were timid and hesitant – afraid. Ron held the phone tenderly with both hands, giving a small hum.

'I understand – all right, this weekend then? Just the three of us?'

'_Yes, I'll be sure to cancel any appointments I have then – no interruptions._'

'Are you allowed to do that?' Ron half teased with a slight laugh; he could see Draco giving a half smug, half nervous grin right now as he answered.

'_Hey, I'm the boss now, I can do whatever I damn please._' Ron laughed a little at the response, before humming in response – for some reason, it relieved him a little to know that some part of the other man hadn't changed at all. They spent a few minutes to set up the time and location, before bidding farewell to each other, hanging up with an odd silence. Ron stared at the phone in his hand, still doubting this was really happening; he placed it back on its hook, before simply sitting there, staring at the space in front of him as his mind began to wonder off. He wonder how much of the blond was still the same – how much of him had changed in the last seven years; could he still love him again if there was something different – he reached a hand for his neck, snapping out of his daze when he realised it was bare. He thought he had killed that habit the day he gave the pendent to Aidyn; he curled his fingers to his chest, feeling his heart aching against his skin. Could he fall back in love with Draco – or did he never fall out of it in the first place?

'God, please, please, _please_ tell me I really am doing the right thing…'

**----- Chapter Nine -----**


	10. Chapter 10

Yes, guess what – its massive update at one time and show off like a bitch time! So here's massive update number 2! And well long overdue; so sorry if I'm not keeping up with my writing prompts, but seeing has I have midterms in about two weeks and barely ANY time to myself 4 out of 5 days of the week, I have a very tiring and energy draining schedule to keep. So – enjoy.

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

* * *

**---- Chapter Ten ----**

He was having second thoughts – he was always having second thoughts, but this time he couldn't back down. Aidyn was swinging their hands, a slight bounce to her step as they walked to the park, the fair-haired child occasionally glancing up at him to flash a huge smile. Ron gazed down at his daughter with a nervous smile, gently squeezing her hand as they walked through the entrance of the park, walking along the path. He couldn't help that – all the little smiles, the small comments she made along the way were encouragements to him, as if she could tell he was uneasy about this meeting. He wasn't sure why, but it was oddly comforting knowing that; he halted in his tracks seeing the blond standing several feet in front of them, waiting exactly where he said he would be. Ron hesitated a moment, feeling Aidyn tug at his hand; he glanced down at the little girl seeing her flash him a big, warm smile, nodding her head as if trying to affirm it was the right thing to do.

Swallowing past his fears, his doubts, Ron continued forward, his breath stopping for a moment as pale grey eyes turned to their direction. The relieved smile and the shine of excitement lit up the other's face, watching the pair coming towards him. Draco gave them a small, rather awkward greeting, Ron returning the gesture in the same manner, both unsure of where to begin. Draco looked down to the little girl clinging to her father's arm, smiling up at him warmly; he held his hand out hesitantly, unsure of what to say to the child. He wasn't sure how much of their past Ron had told her, or if the redhead had even told her he was her other parent.

Aidyn seemed to noticed the awkwardness between the two grown men, pouting to herself as she let out a silent sigh; she let her father's hand go, taking a step between them as she took initiative and surprised both men a little.

'Hello! I'm Aidyn Weasley – thank you for meeting with us today, Draco!' Draco glanced down at the girl slightly surprised; he was expecting her to call him "Mr Malfoy" out of politeness, but it was becoming apparent that she inherited his manner. The blond smiled at her, reaching a hesitant hand to pat her on the head.

'No – thank you for coming out with me today.' The girl smiled widely at him, and Draco sworn she was almost grinning; he had to laugh – Ron was right, she was a lot like him. He withdrew his hand back, holding it out to the child giving her a tender smile; Aidyn did not hesitate one second to reach out for his, feeling his fingers close tenderly around hers. He could hear his heart beating in his ears – this was his daughter, the child he and Ron had created, and even though this was the first time he's finally met her, he felt connected to her as if he had always been there for the girl. He jolted from his day dream, seeing Aidyn gazing up at him expectantly with her bright sapphire blue eyes; perhaps they didn't need to tell her he was her father.

'So Aidyn – what do you want to do today? We have the whole day ahead of us.' She flashed him a smile, showing off pearl white teeth; Aidyn reached her free hand out for Ron's, the redhead blushing slightly as he glanced over to Draco, seeing a small flush on the other's face as he smiled tenderly. Aidyn tugged on their hands, getting their attention on her as she glanced up between them.

'I wanna go ice skating!' Ron glanced over to the other man, shrugging his shoulders.

'Think you're up to it?'

'I haven't ice skated in years, but it should be a good laugh. She can show off how good she is compared to me.' He answered, glancing down to the little girl standing between them; Aidyn stuck her tongue out at him playfully, Ron chuckling a little before nagging her it was impolite to brag. Draco only smiled; he hoped some day in the future that something like this – going out on family outings, and being able to spend time with them would become a frequent thing, that he and Ron would be able to talk without awkwardness, with the bitter memories, the pain. Aidyn began pulling them along, supplying most of the conversation, for which both men were grateful for as they were having trouble finding the right words to say to each other. Draco felt her squeeze his hand slightly, gazing down at the little girl curiously; Aidyn was talking with her father, before briefly pausing the conversation, turning her head to glance up at him, her smile was hopeful. Draco was caught by surprise at that smile – it was almost as if she was hoping to see him more often after this, that this wouldn't be a onetime miracle and – maybe he was reading too much into this, but – that he would be part of their family. He squeezed her hand in return, a loving smile gracing his features as he nodded his head slowly. The glow in her starling blue eyes seemed to brighten, before continuing on with her chatter as if she had never stopped. They walked on without noticed of the people around them – no doubt it looked odd, seeing a child holding the hands of two men as if both were her parents, but neither man seemed to care; only focused on each other and the fair-haired girl walking between them.

**-8-**

He chuckled as he watched the pair skate around the rink; the more he watched Aidyn, the more he was beginning to see that she really was like him in personality and habits. Ron let her hand go as the little girl sped up her pace, calling out to her to slow down or least be careful where she skated; he had tried to catch her earlier whenever she past him – the redhead had yet to do it successfully without falling down. Draco sighed as he leaned against the wall of the rink, watching them with a small smile; Hadrian loved ice skating, so he and Anabel would take him sometimes but he usually stayed off the ice. He hadn't skated in years and it showed itself very blatantly earlier when he had barely done a few strides, slipped and fell. He resigned to standing on the edge, clinging to the wall in order to stay upright and hope that no one would crash into him while he waited there.

Aidyn passed by him in a blur, making Draco jump out of his skin a little; the little girl giggled as she turned to a stop, giving him a smug little grin. Draco only rolled his eyes at the expression, still clinging to the wall. She skated up to him, reaching out to grab his wrist and began tugging at his sleeve. Draco shook his head.

'Oh no…'

'Please! I want you to skate with me!' Draco gently pulled his sleeve out her grasp, giving her an apologetic smile.

'I can't – I don't want to hurt you if I fall.'

'I'll be all right – let me teach you how to skate again!' She offered eagerly; Draco shook his head hesitantly, before ushering her to go on with her skating. She pouted at him, crossing her arms over her chest and he had to bite his lip; she really was too much like him. He let out sigh, slowly releasing his hold on the wall one hand at a time, grabbing on to and releasing again till he felt he had his balance. Aidyn let out a small cheer, before taking him by the hands and began skating backwards slowly, gently pulling him along. Draco swayed unsteadily on his feet, trying not to stumble backwards or forwards and bring the young girl with him. It took a few short stops and some false starts before he was beginning to get the feel of it, feeling a little more confident for each step he took. He gave Aidyn a small grin, the fair child gazing up at him with a smile before slowly releasing his hands. He felt cocky, and perhaps maybe that's why he felt himself slip off balance the second she let go of his hands; Draco flailed a little trying to regain his balance, closing his eyes to prepare for the collision with the ice again.

He gazed up into sapphire blue eyes staring down at him tenderly, a soft smile coming to Ron's face as he shook his head at the blond. Draco cleared his throat, muttering a small thanks as the other helped him up to his feet again; he jumped at the hand grabbing at his arm, supporting his balance.

'Maybe I should skate with him, sweetie. You go ahead and enjoy yourself.' She only gazed at them expectantly, before nodding her head and skated off ahead of them, leaving the two men by themselves in a pair. Draco glanced over to the man skating besides him, holding on to his arm as they slowly made their way around the outer edge of the rink, the other skaters passing them by in a blur. He could feel the blood rushing to his head; Ron was looking everywhere but at him, as if he couldn't stand to face him. Draco turned his gaze down to the ice, suddenly stopping them that Ron glanced over at him confused.

'… It's fine. You don't have to force yourself to help me if you don't want to.' He said hesitantly, not daring to look at the freckled face staring at him; he let out a slight yelp at the arm reaching around his waist, pulling him forward again. Pale grey eyes gazed up at the redhead, his face tinted with a light shade of magenta as starling blue eyes gazed forward.

'I want to…' Ron answered softly; Draco blinked at him in surprise, before turning his gaze away, knowing he was blushing. He suddenly had to chuckle to himself as a memory from the past began to arise.

'This – it's kind of like the time when I first took you skating.'

'We reversed roles since then.' He noted and the blond laughed, remembering how it was him holding Ron the first time the redhead stepped on the ice. He could run, he could skateboard and blade, but he couldn't stand even two seconds on the ice. A reminisce sigh passed through the blond's lips, turning to his skating partner with a soft smile; Ron returned the same smile in response. Draco felt his heartbeat racing in his ears; Ron was so close to him – the warmth, the heat between them – he was surprised it was still there. The other's face was so close to his, he could almost lean over and so easily…

'PSYCHE!' Both men let out a yelp, Draco flailing a bit as he felt Aidyn push him from behind, causing him to sway off balance; Ron tried to steady him again, but the surprise had caught him off guard as well, both men falling back onto the ice. Aidyn turned to a stop in front of them, covering her mouth with hands to hide her laughter; Ron winced as he sat himself up, carefully helping Draco up as well. He gave the girl a nagging glare, Aidyn only shrugging her shoulders playfully.

'You all right, Draco?'

'Sure – only landed on my ars-butt.' Ron only rolled his eyes, standing up to his feet first, making sure he had his balance before holding his hand out to the other man. Draco clung to him, trying to regain his balance as he rose to his feet unsteadily, letting a sigh of relief once he was sure he was stable; both men looked to the little girl with a nagging stare, Aidyn giving them her best pout.

'I'm hungry.'

'Next time just say so, honey. You didn't have to knock us over like that.' Ron nagged, Aidyn only shrugged as she glanced to the ice. The redhead sighed, before glancing over Draco, the blond nodding his head to the silent question; the faster he was off the ice, the better in his opinion. He let Ron guide him back to the gate, Aidyn already rushing ahead of them to fetch her shoes from the cubby hole. Draco greeted the dry ground with relief, Ron chuckling slightly before they headed to retrieve their own shoes and return the skates.

**-8-**

'Thanks for spending the day with us – and I'm sorry again for what happened at the ice rink.'

'Don't worry about it, Ron. We both fell for it.' Ron groaned at the pun, before shaking his head with a slight laugh; Draco smiled tenderly at his response, reaching his hand out to the other man.

'Well, I guess I'll see you then.' He started hesitantly; Ron only hummed, shaking the out stretched hand in front of him.

'Y-yeah, we had a great time, Draco – thanks.' Draco nodded as he answered with a hum, reluctantly releasing the other man's hand. The two men stood in awkward silence for several minutes, before Draco cleared his throat and began heading in the opposite direction. He halted in his tracks at the tugging on his sleeve, glancing down to the girl holding him back. He gazed at her curiously, Aidyn motioning with her hand for him to come down to her height, the blond compiling as he knelt down close to her. Without warning she gave him a small peck on the cheek, pulling back with a wide smile.

'See you soon, Draco!' She piped enthusiastically, the blond staring at her in slight surprise; Aidyn turned back to Ron, taking his hand as she waved over her shoulder. Draco waved back in a slight daze as he watched the pair walk off. Hadrian's probably kissed him on the cheek hundreds of times before, but why did it feel different with Aidyn – perhaps it was the fact that Aidyn was actually his blood daughter that the feelings arising were stronger, deeper even though he had only just formally met the child today. A warm, loving smile graced his features before turning to head back home, feeling a happiness he thought had died seven years ago.

**----- Chapter Ten -----**


	11. Chapter 11

I think – I have my writing streak back; I have been writing, but not the stories that need it. To be honest, after taking a writing class and looking over my old stuff, I really want to take everything and just re-write every single piece of shit I wrote because they really are all just that… pieces of shit…

Anyways – I may work on replacing older chapters with newer ones, but for now – here's something to mull over.

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

-**Chapter Eleven-**

'… but really though, he was right – she's so much like me, it's as if she's my clone or something.' Anabel laughed slightly as she handed the dripping plate to Draco to dry, reaching for the next solid dish to wash. The blond simply wiped it down, a tender smile on his face as he recounted his day with his daughter. He had been seeing them quite frequently these past few weeks and he was discovering more and more about Aidyn than when they first met.

'However, she has some of his quarks too; she does that same irritated pout Ron always did whenever he was annoyed with something. She even talks like him when she's like that.'

'Sounds like she's quite the handful.' Anabel commented; Draco only snickered as he set the dry plate aside, grabbing the next one from the woman's hands.

'You don't know the half of it; but – Ron's raised her well. She's a good child.' He answered softly, staring down at the ceramic piece in his hands; Anabel hummed gently in a response as she smiled, before noting the sudden silence in the man. Draco stopped his movements as he gazed down at the plate in his hands, subtly tilting it to catch the light's reflections. Anabel gazed at him worrying, reaching a gentle hand for his shoulder.

'Do you – do you think he could ever love me again?' He asked suddenly, not once glancing at the woman next to him, or the hand on his shoulder. Anabel stared at him slightly surprised before her eyes softened, removing her hand to tenderly grasp his, causing the man to look at her. The smile on her face was radiant.

'You are – still the same man I met seven years ago,' she answered softly, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. 'Though – I do believe you've matured quite a bit since then.' Pale grey eyes merely blinked at her, before a tiny smile graced slender, pointed features; he reached his other hand over hers, silently muttering to himself.

'I suppose that's so… thank you, Anabel.' Anabel only nodded, the smile on her face widening before releasing his hand and moved to continue on with her washing; she paused a moment, sensing something behind them, gazing over her shoulder. Curious, Draco glanced back to the archway, spying green-grey eyes peering from the around the corner.

'Do you need something, Hadrian?' Anabel asked her son curiously, the boy gently shaking his head as he gazed up hesitantly at them. Draco gave him a tender smile.

'Hey, what's up sport?' Hadrian pouted at him, before turning on his heels and ran from the archway, leaving both Anabel and Draco blinking in confusion. Anabel sighed as she returned to her washing.

'Lately – he seems to be sulking a lot.' Draco glanced at her from the corner of his eyes, looking back to the spot where the boy had been standing earlier. He let out a low hum, before turning back to help with the drying, awaiting the next dish from the woman's hands. After a few minutes, she took the dish cloth from his hands, the blond gazing at her puzzled.

'I'll take over from here. Why don't you go talk to him, all right?'

'I –I don't mind helping out!' Anabel only smiled, holding a finger up.

'I'm almost done anyways; go on, go have a little chat with him. It's been a while since you've talked with him.' Draco only gazed at her for a minute more, before hesitantly nodding his head, letting go of the drying cloth slowly heading out of the small kitchen. Anabel smiled over her shoulder as she watched him leave, before a small sigh escaped her, drying off the bowl in her hands.

Draco walked out to the small living room, spying the boy sitting in the middle of the floor, idly playing with a set of building blocks. He came up quietly behind the small child, kneeling down to the floor as he reached a hand to tap Hadrian on the shoulder. Hazel eyes glanced up at him briefly, the blond giving him a tender smile; he was responded with a blank stare and a cold shoulder. Draco sighed as he sat him on the floor; he could tell Hadrian was upset at him for something, but what that was he wasn't sure.

'Hey sport, what's wrong? Have I become boring or something?' he asked. Hadrian didn't answer, piling the blocks on top of each other. Draco reached a hand to rub the back of his neck; he wasn't used to have the boy mad at him, and was a little unsure of how to handle it.

'Did I – do something to upset you?' he asked. The clacking of the blocks stopped almost instantly. 'It's all right to tell me, I won't get mad, I promise.' Draco quickly added. 'I just don't want you to be upset, so if there's something I did please let me know.' Hadrian didn't say anything, the frown on his round face deepening and Draco knew well enough that a tantrum was about to follow.

'… You're always playing with her…' he finally muttered.

'Her…? Aidyn, you mean?' Draco asked confused. Hadrian suddenly grabbed the blocks and threw one over his head; Draco still flinched, holding an arm up on reflex even though it missed him by a few feet. He hadn't expected Hadrian to be jealous of Aidyn just because he was spending more time with her lately.

'You're always talking about her! You're always playing with her!' he began yelling. He threw another block over Draco's head, the blond only watching with a silent gaze. 'I hate her! She's taking you away from me!'

'Hadrian…'

'That's enough!' neither had time to react as Anabel's hand smacked the little boy hard on the back, both looking at her in shock. Hadrian slowly looked up at his mother, eyes wide in surprise; she had never raised a hand to him like this before. Anabel's gaze softened from the stern look on her face, gently kneeling down to the floor in front of him. He flinched as she reached her hand out, but his mother took him tenderly around the shoulder.

'Hadrian – it's not nice to talk about other people like that.'

'But!' he started. Anabel put a gentle finger to his mouth, gently shushing him as she gave him a lovingly smile.

'Just as you are precious to me and daddy, Aidyn is precious to Draco,' she began. The boy suddenly looked away, a sorrowful expression coming to his face. 'Just because Draco is spending time with her lately, doesn't mean he'll love you any less. It's hard to stop loving someone you hold so very dearly to your heart, you know.' She encouraged softly. Hadrian glanced back up at her, meekly nodding his head as he let out a low hum; Draco couldn't help but wonder if there was more to those words that Anabel said.

'Go on, you should apologise to your uncle.'

'Ah, it's okay, Anabel. I know he didn't mean it –' he barely had a chance to finish his sentence before the little boy ran at him, clinging to his neck. Hadrian cried against his shoulder as he muttered out small apologises over and over again. Draco stared at the boy in surprise, before his lips curved into a soft smile, gently taking the child in his arms, soothing the tears.

'Shh, it's all right, Hadrian; I'm not mad at you. It's okay.'

**-8-**

He had been looking forward to this all week long, and Sunday just didn't come fast enough for his taste. This trip wasn't any different from the normal outings Draco spent with Ron and their daughter, but this time there was an extra company. Draco looked down to the small boy clinging to his coat sleeve nervously; after the tantrum Hadrian had thrown earlier that week, Draco decided he wanted the boy meet Aidyn. They hadn't really interacted with each other since that fateful meeting in the park those few months back.

Anabel was all for the idea, since Hadrian's shy nature kept him from making friends outside their circle. Ron was more than happy to have the boy tag along, saying Aidyn has been asking about him since Draco was his uncle, and his name came up in their conversations. The sandy-haired boy was anxious – he had felt bad for all the things he had said about Aidyn and had the childish fear that she wouldn't like him because of it. Draco ruffled up his hair, telling him over and over that Aidyn would still play with him.

They reached the restaurant where they were meeting Ron and Aidyn, stepping in through the doors Draco easily spotted the pair off in the corner of the room, seeing Aidyn wave eagerly to them. Draco only smiled as he took Hadrian by the hand and walked them over to the table; Ron turned around to greet them, standing up as he and Draco shook hands.

'Nice to see you again, Draco.'

'Same here, Ron. This is Hadrian – Malfoy in public, Hart in private.' Draco introduced. Ron turned a tender smile to the small boy looking up at him apprehensively.

'Nice to meet you, Hadrian. This is my daughter, Aidyn Weasley.' Aidyn jumped out from her seat, Hadrian shrinking back as the blond-haired girl stepped in front him, a wide smile plastered on her face. She grabbed him by the wrist with little warning and pulled him to the seat next to hers, chatting all the way and leaving the poor boy seeming stunned. Ron chuckled as he offered the seat next to him to Draco, the man taking it.

'He seems speechless,' the redhead commented. Draco only laughed.

'He was a little nervous about coming here, and he's actually quite shy despite who his father is.' Draco answered. 'I suppose it's the one thing he got from his mother.'

'So I gathered,' Ron handed a menu to the other. They sat in pleasant warmth, the two men occupied with their own conversations while Aidyn supplied most of hers and Hadrian's, the sandy-haired boy only more than happy to let her talk. The meal came and past, Draco about to call for the bill, but Ron beat him to it, saying this time it was his turn to treat them. Draco was about to protest, but he felt a gentle tap against his leg, glancing over to the table to see Aidyn staring at him intently. He blinked at the young girl, who started shaking her head and Draco couldn't help but snicker; he just got told off by his own daughter.

With the bill paid and done, they gathered up their coats and began heading out into the chilly February air. Ron made sure Aidyn was wrapped up tight in her coat, before securing his as they stepped through the doors, Draco wrapping Hadrian's scarf around his neck for him as they walked along the pavement.

'So – any plans for what's next?' Draco asked, staring at Ron expectantly.

'There's a park not far from here; figured we let the kids have their exercise,' the taller man answered. Draco smiled at the suggestion.

'Not a bad idea; this one needs to burn off some energy anyways.' He teased, tugging at Hadrian's hand. The boy only stuck his tongue out at him, both men laughing as they made their way to the park. There was a small playground for the kids to play, so both let them go after a few quick nags then sat down on the bench nearby.

Draco watched with a soft smile as Hadrian climbed in and out of the plastic tubes, Aidyn crawling over the bars as she dropped some snow on the other child's head. Draco couldn't help but feel a little jealous that he was never able to experience such common things when he was a child. It really hit him just what kind of life he had been forced to live and the kind of demands that had been placed on him even as a child; perhaps that had been one of the reasons why he envied Ron when they first met. The other had freedom to be a normal child.

'They're getting along quite well, don't you think?' Ron suddenly asked. Draco shook his head up, briefly glancing to the man next to him, before looking over to the children playing. Hadrian was trying to throw a snowball at Aidyn, but the snow wasn't wet enough to hold together. It fell apart before it even reached her. The girl only stuck her tongue out at him, the smaller boy chasing after her around the play set. Draco smiled, nodding his head in agreement.

'Yes, she's certainly giving him a run for his money.'

'Oh she's very good at that – swear she gets it from you, you bloody bastard.' Ron teased. The blond laughed before turning a soft gaze to the man aside of him. Pale, freckled skin was slightly flushed from the cold, deep blue eyes shining bright as they followed the two children laughing, running in the snow; bright flame red hair hung around his face, curling at the end under his chin. His was growing his hair out again. Without thinking, Draco reached a hand to brush back the bangs covering the face he had longed for, for seven years.

Ron didn't move, slowly turning his glance to the blond; Draco drew his fingers back hesitantly as grey bore into blue. Both seemed to be searching for something, something that couldn't be reached with words, in each other's eyes. Ron darted his eyes away first, biting down on his lower lip, before glancing back to the man; Draco kept his gaze steady, before reaching for the golden band on his left finger. Ron watched with his breath hitched as slender, pale fingers slide the ring off, watching it disappear into the folds of the black coloured coat pocket.

Time seemed to freeze as Ron brought his eyes back to the blond's face, an almost pained expression on delicate, pointed features. What was going through the other's head right now, he wondered. What was the purpose of doing that – did the blond mean anything by pulling off his wedding ring in front of him?

'Anabel… is a good woman, but… she's not mine…' Draco said softly. Ron only blinked at him, not sure what he was saying or where this conversation was going. Draco only looked square in the face, swallowing past the lump that formed in his throat. '… Papers – can say whatever the hell they want, but Anabel and I are not married… I…I wanted a divorce, I didn't want to make her miserable for the rest of her life…'

'So why didn't you do it?' Ron asked quietly. A brief flash of shame shone in moon-grey eyes, the blond ducking his head away from him.

'Because – I'm a bloody coward; I didn't want to die alone, and I didn't think… I'd ever see you again… I still…' Draco held his words. He wanted so desperately to say those words, but he knew Ron was not ready for them. He knew Ron was not ready to trust him again, not yet. The redhead stared at him for several minutes in silence, before reaching a hand out to take his. Draco looked up at him, surprised by the soft smile on the freckled face.

'Do you – still think you'll die alone?' he asked. The question took the blond off guard, before a tender smile came to his face, shaking his head.

'No… I have people around me who love me, despite all the horrible things I've done.' He answered. The smile brightened, feeling the hand on his tightened; Draco looked down at their hands and couldn't help notice that Ron was holding his left hand with his left. He gazed up hopefully at the other man, sapphire blue eyes trained on him with an intense light; he felt his heartbeat quicken just slightly, noting that Ron's breathing had quickened as well. Draco could feel his body leaning towards the redhead, the distance closing fast as Ron did the same. He could feel their breathes mingling, their faces barely an inch apart before a sudden cry averted their attention, both men jerking their heads to see Hadrian curled up on the ground, Aidyn crouching over him.

A panic swept through Draco as he quickly got up to this feet, running over to the children; Ron followed at his heels, both men kneeling down to see Hadrian clutching at his head, tears streaming down his cheeks.

'What happened?' Ron asked gently. Aidyn looked up at him, her own deep azure eyes scared and worried.

'He slipped – I think he hit his head,' she answered calmly. Ron beckoned for her to come to his side, the girl nodding her head as she stood up and walked over to her father. Draco resumed her place, carefully sitting Hadrian up in his arms as he tried to comfort the boy.

'Where does it hurt, sport?' he asked worryingly. The boy couldn't stop crying, moving his hands to show where the pain was; Draco inspected the area, letting out a relief sigh at the small bump on the side of the boy's scalp. He wasn't bleeding, and that took an immense amount of worry off the blond's chest. He carefully scooped Hadrian up in his arms, tenderly patting his back as the child cried against his shoulder.

'Shh, it's all right, sport. It's all right,' he assured softly. The crying soon slowed to small whimpers, Hadrian lifting his head up to wipe at his eyes as his tears stopped. Draco offered him a smile, tenderly kissing the spot Hadrian had hurt himself. Ron stood up along with Aidyn, the girl looking up at them anxiously.

'He's all right, dear – just a bit shocked, is all,' Draco comforted, seeing a small smile appear on her delicate face. Ron smiled in relief that Hadrian was fine, taking his daughter by the shoulder.

'I guess I should be getting him home.'

'It is getting a bit late,' Ron agreed. They talked for a little longer before saying their goodbyes, Draco giving Aidyn an awkward one-armed hug, before she pulled away, gently tugging at Hadrian's sleeve to get him to look at her. She gave him a bright, cheery smile, the boy sniffling as he wiped at his eyes, returning it shyly. Ron and Draco only gazed at each other, before Draco held his hand out.

'See you soon, Ron,' he parted. Ron reached out for his hand, giving it a briefly shake, before he pulled the man closer to him, reaching his other arm around him and Hadrian. Draco stood in shock at the unexpected embrace as the redhead pulled back; the flush on his face had darkened, Ron nodding his head hesitantly. He took Aidyn's hand, giving the pair one last parting before they headed out on their way; Draco was sure he was imagining it, but he could've sworn there was a light spring in the man's step as he walked away with their daughter.

Pale fingers brushed over his ear, still shivering from the hushed, breathless words that the other had whispered against it.

_I believe you…_

Draco felt his heartbeat wildly pounding in his chest, jumping into his head; it took him several minutes to fully comprehend just what that meant, before wide smile spread across his face. He adjusted his hold on Hadrian and began the walk back to home.

'Uncle Draco – you're crying; you're not hurt too, are you?' The question surprised him. Draco put his free hand to his face, feeling the tears he hadn't realised were streaking down his cheeks. He quickly wiped them away, turning a smile to the boy looking at him worried.

'No, your uncle isn't hurt, Hadrian. He's crying because – he's just so happy he doesn't know how else to show it.' He explained. The small smile appeared on the tanned face, feeling small arms hug him around the neck. Draco understood what that whisper meant – Ron believed in him again. He believed in the promises Draco would make from now, he believed in his want to be involved with their daughter's life – his life. Perhaps there was still hope yet that Ron could love him again.

**-Chapter Eleven-**


	12. Chapter 12

Yes, it's a new chapter – and it didn't take me over a year to do it this time! Actually – next update will be next weekend, since this was originally supposed to be one chapter, but eh… it ended up being 13 pages long… and this is just a personal preference, but I don't like my chapters being more than 6 pages at a time… 8 is the break limit. So next chapter might be a tad bit wordy… sorry…

And there will likely be mistakes – I will fix those when I'm not running on less than five hours of sleep. Enjoy now.

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

**Mature Content Warning:** This fiction may and will contain situations of the sexual/intimate kind as it progresses, and mostly between two guys; if this bothers you there's a lovely invention called "backspace" – use it wisely. :p

**-Chapter Twelve-**

He was greeted with a tight hug at the door, returning the gesture in the same manner; between working, raising kids and domestic housekeeping Remus was kept very busy at times. He pressed a hard kiss to Ron's cheek as they pulled away, seeing a hearty smile light up the redhead's face – he hadn't seen Ron this happy in years. It was refreshing to see the young man look so lively and animated again.

'It's good to see you, Ron.'

'Good to see you – feels like ages since I last saw you,' Ron answered. He invited the elder man in, Remus bowing his head as he stepped through the threshold, pulling off his jacket which Ron took to hang on the hook nearby. He directed them to the kitchen, offering to make some tea for both of them.

'Afraid I ran out of blacks, though – flower tea all right?'

'Flower tea is just fine, thanks,' Remus answered. He sat himself down at the table while he watched the single father move about the kitchen, gathering a kettle to set on the stove, two cups from the cupboard above, and a box of tea. He asked over his shoulder if the other wanted milk or sugar with his cup; Remus shook his head to both and they simply sat and waited for the water to boil.

'So – who's the new man?' Remus asked. A song-like tone came to his voice as he spoke. Ron only gave him a devious grin, leaning back against the counter as he waited for the kettle to whistle.

'Well now – who says I've got one?' he teased.

'Come on, Ron – everyone's been speculating now; I don't think any of us have seen you this happy in years.'

'Well…' at that moment the kettle began to whistle. Ron pushed himself away from the counter to turn the flame off, picking the pot up by the handle and moved to pour the hot water into each cup. He took two tea bags out from the box, put it back into the cupboard then walked over to the table, handing one to the greying haired man. Remus thanked him as he took his cup and the plastic bag containing the tea bag; he torn it open, dumping his bag into the hot water. Both men were silent as they fixed their own teas, Remus taking a careful sip from his before casting a mischievous smile to Ron. The other didn't meet his gaze as he quickly bought his cup to his lips, hiding the grin on his face.

'So, not going to tell who's brightened up your life?' he teased. Ron hesitated for a moment, before placing his cup down on the table.

'Remus – have you ever… did you ever wonder to yourself why you love someone the way you do?' he asked. The question startled the older man. 'I mean, have you ever questioned why you still love this person despite everything that's happened?'

'Well…' there was a slight pause, before a gentle smile came to mature features. 'When I first realised I was developing a crush on Sirius – I panicked. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it; he was my closest friend and I didn't want to hurt that.' He recounted. Ron only listened with a soft smile, taking another sip from his tea as he waited for the other to continue.

'Of course, the idiot didn't notice a bloody thing,' he sounded exasperated as he said that. Ron had to laugh, seeing a smile spread across the aging face. There was a long silence before the man carried on, a serious expression on his gentle features. 'Then I found myself really falling in love… and I had to ask myself, "Moony – what are you doing? You're falling for a womanizer".' The smile slipped from Ron's face as he studied the other; light brown eyes were staring off to a corner.

'So why didn't you let him go?' The question was simple, but the answer for it wasn't quite as simple as it could have been. Remus sat in silence for a long while before an odd sort of smile came to his face.

'James may have been the first to hold his hand out to me – but it was Sirius who was my first friend,' he stated. 'I guess… in a way, he was my first love. You don't really forget your first love so easily.'

'Your first love, huh…' Ron mulled the thought over his head. They spent a few minutes in quiet, slipping at their tea before the thought struck through Remus' head.

'It's Cedric, isn't it?'

'What?'

'Cedric Diggory – you got back with him? Is that why you've been so happy lately?'

'Remus – I haven't had contact with Cedric since the day we broke up…' Ron stated flatly. Curious brown eyes gazed at him steadily, slender strong hands gripping around the cup. Ron bit his lip, unsure if he was ready to admit this out loud, turning his eyes away from the man. 'Cedric… wasn't my first love, if I'm really honest with myself…' He didn't look – he didn't need to, to know the kind of face was Remus was pulling at him now. He was suddenly grateful that Sirius had been too busy at work to tag along as well – he knew exactly how the man would react to the news.

'Ron, please tell me it's not…'

'My first and real true love was…'

'Don't!'

'… Draco…' There was a heavy pause between them as both let the confession sit in. Ron felt his heart thumping in his chest as the words echoed in his ear; Draco had been his first love, and he had never been able to let him go, despite the pain. He remembered the three, whispered words he spoke to the blond the other day at the park, just before they went their separate ways.

_I believe you_

And he did; he did with all his heart. Remus only looked at him with a blank face, still struggling with whether he believed what he was hearing or not. After a bit, he let out an exasperated sigh, leaning to bury his face into his palms.

'You are _fucking_ kidding me!' He groaned. Ron couldn't help but smile at the profanity; it was rare to hear it from the elder's mouth, especially now with his wising maturity. Remus took a few moments of deep breathing to regain his composure, before straightening himself out, giving the redhead a knowing look.

'All right, now I'm sure you have a good explanation for this – so start explaining.' Ron only nodded his head, and tried his best to explain everything and hoped that the man would be more understanding of his choice by the end of it. He started with that day in the park – the day Draco told him the truth, and everything that followed after that.

**-8-**

He shifted through the papers in his hands, before letting out a weary sigh as he glanced over his shoulder to stare out the glass plane windows. It was bleak and grey, typical London winter weather but even that hadn't managed to damper his recent high spirits. Draco quickly thumbed through the rest of the papers, only setting aside the proposals he approved of, while the rest he shoved carelessly to the trash next to his desk. He didn't look up at the sound of the door, knowing exactly who it was and dreading it.

'Well, well – you're working for once,' the dark-haired woman remarked sarcastically. Draco only rolled his eyes, holding up the documents he had finished with for her to take.

'As _encouraging_ and _motivating_ as you are, even your snarky remarks aren't going to spoil my mood,' he answered with a grin. Evelyn only raised a fine brow at him as she walked over to his desk to snatch the papers from him, dumping another load in front of him. Draco bit his tongue, but obediently and reluctantly pulled the pile closer to him and began scanning through them.

'I'm here to remind you that you still have that conference with the board at three; also – Mr. Kindle has requested an audience with you at four. And don't forget to sign the release papers for that shipment from the American branch – don't want to be up all night making calls again,' the secretary nagged. Draco only sighed and nodded his head non-committedly, shifting through the documents, tossing aside the ones he disapproved of while sorting the rest in order of potential. The woman only shook her head, reminding him one last time, before turning around to head out the door. She paused a moment, before staring down at a memo note on her clipboard in her arms.

'One more thing,' she began. Draco made a small noise in annoyance as he looked up at her.

'What?'

'… The Troubadour Gallery called earlier – it seems someone has bought that anonymous painting you asked to keep an eye on.'

'Is that right? Who bought it?' he asked curiously. He was surprised when the woman laughed.

'That's the fitting part – the buyer left no "name" to say the least; only an alias: "Prince", I believe.' There was no answer. Evelyn glanced over her shoulder to see that the man was gazing off to another corner of the room as he sifted through his mind. She cleared his throat to get his attention, the blond snapping his head up before diving back into his work, dismissing her. With a nod, she turned and walked out of the office, closing the doors tight behind her. Moon-grey eyes glanced up at the closed door, before Draco slouched back into his seat, sulking at the pile of papers in front of him. He was in for a long day.

He straightened himself up and was about to set to finishing his sorting when a soft, classical tune rang from inside his desk drawer. Without hesitation he quickly yanked the drawer open, pulling out the phone and hit the answer key; he paused a moment, catching his breath before answering into the speaker.

'Hello Ron.'

'Don't bloody assume it's me all the time,' the other laughed. Draco only smiled.

'You're the only person in the world who knows this number, no matter how many times you call.' There was a small hum on the other end before both parties went silent. Draco started fidgeting a little in his seat as the silence went on, wondering what Ron was calling for, and hoping it was nothing serious. After what seemed like ten minutes, the redhead finally spoke.

'Listen, um – if-if you're not busy tonight, I was wondering if – you'd like to come over for dinner?' the question was timid, uncertain as Ron spoke. Draco felt his breath stop, before clearing his throat.

'Y-yes – yes! I'd love to; erm, what time should I come over?'

'We usually eat around seven-seven thirty, so come around six thirty?'

'All right, I'll be there then; six thirty,' he could hear the smile in the other's voice. They only talked for a brief moment more before Draco excused himself back to work, unwilling to hang up the phone, putting it back into its place inside the drawer. He looked to the pile of documents sprawled across the wooden desk; he looked at his watch – he had exactly four hours and thirty-three minutes to get every piece of work done. He subtracted about two for the conference later, leaving him with about two hours or so. He was going to make a lot of mistakes, he was sure, but he wanted to be done with this as quickly as possible to get out of work early for tonight.

With that set in mind, he quickened his pace, signing off what was necessary and pushing aside of less importance. This would be the first time he'd step foot in Ron's flat since their reunion, and the fact he'd be in the environment where their daughter grew up in – it made him anxious and a bit giddy at the same time.

**-Chapter Twelve End-**


	13. Chapter 13

So next chapter; now that I've gotten to the parts I actually know the writing is a lot smoother from here. There's still a lot left behind this is finished, so don't expect it to be done any time soon.

This chapter ended up longer than I was expecting it – had to split it from the last one, cuz it was too long… so warning, it will be a bit wordy. Enjoy for now.

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

**Mature Content Warning:** This fiction may and will contain situations of the sexual/intimate kind as it progresses, and mostly between two guys; if this bothers you there's a lovely invention called "backspace" – use it wisely.

**-Chapter Thirteen-**

The sound of the doorbell made him jump out of his skin, Ron quickly running the comb through his hair; he could hear Aidyn's footsteps running to answer the door. He checked himself over one last time, glancing at his reflection in the vanity mirror. Content with his appearance, he took in a deep breath and walked out of his bedroom.

Aidyn had all but pounced the blond, who had picked up her in his arms, gently swinging her around before putting the girl back on the ground. Ron couldn't help the tender smile that spread across his face; they barely knew each other, yet already acted as if they have their whole lives. Ron cleared his throat to make his presence known, seeing Draco look up to him; a nervous smile replaced the one before it, the blond straightening himself up.

'Ah, um – thanks for having me over,' Draco stuttered slightly. Ron only nodded his head in response, and couldn't help but feel a little relieved to see that he hadn't been the only one who gussy upped for tonight's dinner.

'I want to show you my room, Draco!' Aidyn said excitingly, tugging at his sleeve. Draco seemed speechless for a moment, looking between the young girl and the redhead standing on the other side of the room. Ron only nodded.

'It's fine – dinner won't be ready for another ten minutes or so.'

'Well then, a little tour won't hurt in that case,' Draco replied. Aidyn bounced on her heels, before dragging the blond over to where her room was. Ron laughed as he watched their daughter pull the man off, before wandering into the kitchen to finish up putting their meal together.

Aidyn pushed her door open, reaching up for the light switch on her right; Draco blinked to adjust to the sudden brightness as he stepped into the girl's private space. He was mildly surprised at how neat it was for a child her age, the shelves against the back wall lined with books and pictures frames and some small figurines. He felt a tug at his sleeve pulling him towards her bed, Aidyn crawling on to it reaching for the shelf bolted just above her head. She pulled down a small book of some sort, but it had no title or cover. Draco soon realised it was a photo album.

She patted the space next to her, Draco hesitating a moment, before he moved to sit down on the bed with her. Aidyn flashed him a wide smile, before opening the cover of the album, holding it out so Draco could see it as well. He felt his heart swell at the stilled image of Aidyn when she was no older than three. They spent a several minutes going through the small album, Aidyn pointing out all the highlights she could remember – her best Hallowe'en night, the oddest birthday gift, which uncle or aunt did what at which party.

When they were done looking through the photos, Aidyn closed it and stood up to put it back on the shelf, before plopping herself back down. Draco smiled endearingly at the child, reaching a hand out to pat her on the head; she only grinned. A gleam of silver caught his attention from around his daughter's neck.

'Aidyn… that pendant…'

'Oh – daddy gave it to me last year for my birthday,' she explained. She reached around to take it off her neck, holding it up for Draco to see. Slender, long fingers took it hesitantly, as if the metal would burn his skin if he touched it, gazing at it tenderly in the palm of his hand. He was surprised Ron had kept it after all this time – it was the same pendant he had given the redhead during the only Christmas they were able to spend together.

'Daddy said it was special – that he gave it to me, because I was special to him.'

'You are very special – to both of us,' Draco began. He handed the pendant back to her, watching Aidyn put it back around her neck. 'Did he ever tell you where it was from?'

'No – not really; he said someone gave it to him. Someone really precious to him.'

'It was a precious gift and it holds a lot of meaning, dear – so take good care of that, all right?' he inquired. Aidyn only nodded her head vigorously, holding it to her chest. Draco reached his arm around her shoulder, giving her a tight squeeze, the little girl squealing a little. A cough from the door distracted them, seeing Ron leaning against the frame, arms crossed over his chest.

'Dinner is ready, if you two are done bonding in here,' he announced. Aidyn was up on her feet in a flash, heading out of her room to the dining area. Draco stood up much more slowly, pausing at the door as he matched gazes with sapphire blue eyes. Ron gestured with his hand, and Draco proceeded to follow after the seven-year-old girl to the table.

'So what's the menu tonight?'

'Well, I figured I'd make chicken parmesan with some steamed vegetables on the side. There's home-made bread-rolls, and for dessert there's cinnamon pumpkin pie,' Ron listed off as he headed to the kitchen to fetch the food. Aidyn made sure Draco was sitting next to her at the table while they waiting for Ron to come out.

'Sounds wonderful, Ron. Can't wait for the dessert though.'

'Me too! Cinnamon pumpkin is my favourite!' Aidyn piped as she laid her napkin across her lap. Draco smiled lovingly at her.

'It's my favourite as well.' The little girl beamed at him. Ron soon came out with the food, setting it down in the middle of the table and began serving the chicken. The conversations went this way and that, most involving stories about the families, about work, or about Aidyn, the girl squeaking at Ron for the more embarrassing ones he told. Draco only laughed, feeling her kick him under the table whenever he did, before dinner was over and Ron went to go get the pie to cut up and serve.

Once they finished up, Ron shooed them both to the living room couch, suggesting maybe they watch a movie while he cleaned up the leftovers. Draco offered to help, but Ron refused, saying he was the guest and that he was used to this. The blond didn't have much choice in the argument, as Aidyn had already trapped him at her mercy, dragging him over to the couch and turned on the television.

Ron only smiled as he set to work clearing off the table; this was the first time Draco's stepped foot inside their flat, but it almost felt like the man had always been here. It was as if the seven years past had been nothing but a blur, and all the emptiness, the loneliness Ron had felt had been an illusion. He finished putting the leftover food away in the fridge, setting the wet dishes on the rack to dry, before joining the pair out in the living room. They were all unsure of what exactly was showing, but it seemed to be a comedy.

They watched it through to the end, before Aidyn suppressed a yawn, her head dozing off against Draco's shoulder. The two men only smiled at each other before looking down at the child struggling to stay awake. Ron gently jostled her, standing her up to her feet.

'Come on, sweetie – I think it's time for bed.'

'Nnnh! I'm not sleepy!' Aidyn mumbled in protest. Ron only shook his head as he guided the sleepy girl to her room, helping her change into her night gown before laying her down against her pillow. He tucked the sheets tightly around Aidyn, placing her favourite stuffed dragon close to her; her arms immediately wrapped around it, hugging the toy close to her chest.

Draco watched from the door frame, seeing Ron fiddle with the clasp around her neck, carefully pulling the pendant away and placing it on her side dresser. He heard the redhead whisper a goodnight, kissing her on the forehead. Draco walked quietly up behind him, startling Ron a little; they glanced at each other expectantly, unsure of where the other would move. Ron moved first, backing up a little to allow Draco to stand near the edge of Aidyn's bed.

'Good night, angel,' he whispered, leaning over to plant a loving kiss against strawberry pink blond hair. A soft sigh escaped the sleeping child, snuggling deeper into her pillow. Draco pulled back, gently brushing his fingers along silken blond locks; he felt Ron tap him on the shoulder, turning to face him. Silently, Ron gestured to the door, Draco nodding his head as he followed him out. He gave one last look over his shoulder, before easing the door shut behind him.

'Well, I… I had a wonderful time, Ron – thank you for inviting me tonight.'

'I – thank you for coming, I'm sure – you had other things,' Ron said hastily. Draco only hummed, reaching a hand to rub the back of his neck. After a few minutes of awkward silence, he cleared his throat and began heading towards the front door.

'Well then, I – I guess I should –'

'Would you like to see some pictures?' Ron suddenly asked. Draco looked back at him in surprise, seeing that Ron was just as startled as he was. The redhead obviously hadn't expected himself to say that out of nowhere. 'I mean – only if you really want to, I just thought…'

'I'd love to,' Draco answered with a soft smile. Ron returned it, motioning to the couch; Draco took a seat while he watched the other man scan the book shelves sitting against the wall around the television. Ron pulled out about six different books before walking over to where the other was sitting, putting them down on the coffee table. Draco could only raise his eyebrows in question.

'Are those – _all_ of Aidyn?'

'Aidyn, me – anything that has me or her in it; my mum's notorious for taking photos.'

'One woman can't possible take _that_ many photos of _one_ child?' Draco questioned. Ron only grinned at him, seating himself next to the blond as he pulled the first album on top towards them.

'Trust me, my mum can – this isn't even _half_ the collection she has of Aidyn.' Draco only glanced at him curiously – these were not small books either, not like the one Aidyn showed him. Ron opened up the cover and they began looking through seven years' worth of life – the life Draco had missed out on. He couldn't help feel torn that he had missed so moments in Aidyn's life – in Ron's life. It was around the third album that started from the very beginning – the time before Aidyn had been born. Draco had to snicker at one particular picture.

'Is that a woman's night gown?' Ron groaned, burying his face in his palm.

'All the girls in the family were against me – even my own best friend; can't believe mum took that.' Draco only laughed with a fond smile.

'Looks pretty good on you, actually. How far along…?'

'About seven months I think at that point.' They continued on, Ron verbally groaning at the photo of him holding Aidyn for the first time after the cesarean.

'God, now I know how Ginny felt about pictures right after birth – I look miserable in that.'

'The smile on your face says otherwise,' Draco teased. He felt Ron nudge him in the side, but there was a smile on the freckled face. They had just about finished the third album and were going to open the forth when the sound of the door adverted both their attentions, seeing Aidyn walking out of her room.

'What's wrong sweetie? Nightmare?' Ron asked gently. The girl shook her head, rubbing at her eyes groggily.

'I'm thirsty…'

'All right, you head on to bed and I'll get you some water all right?' Aidyn nodded her head, turning around to head back into her room. Draco stood up gently catching Ron's hand before the redhead could head into the kitchen.

'I'll go get it – why don't you put her back to bed,' he suggested. Ron seemed taken back for a moment, before nodding telling him where to find the cups and to use the water from the pitcher. He then walked over to Aidyn, taking the girl by the shoulder and led her back to her room. Draco headed to the kitchen, found the glasses with little problem and poured the water out from the blue pitcher on the counter. He took the cup and walked to Aidyn's room, seeing Ron had just about got the girl back into her bed; he handed the cup to the other, Ron thanking him as he gave it to Aidyn, helping her hold it as she took a long drink.

Once she was snugged back into her bed and asleep again, the two men left the room quietly, only now just noticing the time. Draco fiddled with his fingers as he stood face to face with Ron.

'I guess – I should be going now…'

'Y-yeah, it is getting rather late I suppose.'

'Well – good night then,' Draco bided. He moved past Ron to head to the door, stopping halfway as he tried to pluck up the courage to request one little thing. He turned around to see that Ron had started heading towards his bedroom, the redhead pausing as their eyes caught again.

'Um, I – could I…' Draco fumbled with his words. Ron stood silent before slowly nodding his head – he knew what Draco wanted to asked and what he wanted to do. The shorter man trekked back across the room, stopping just inches away from the redhead. Both held their breath at the close proximity, suddenly very aware of each other's presence; Draco swallowed his breath as he leaned up to gently press his lips against Ron's.

It was just a simple kiss – meant to be quick and light, goodnight type of kiss; he wasn't sure when his hands had reached to tangle in red locks, or when his tongue started sliding in and out with Ron's. He felt rough, firm hands clasp on to his hips, pushing him backwards to where he assumed was the other's bedroom. His back bumped lightly against the surface of the door, Ron fumbling with the handle behind him before feeling himself being pushed in to the room.

Once the sound of the door clicked, Draco pushed him back against it, wrapping his arms tight around the broad shoulders, the couple having not once broken their kiss. They finally pulled apart when the burning ache to breath seared their lunges; their breaths lingered heavily between them, uneven and panting as pale grey stared into light blue.

'God, I've missed you so much!' Draco murmured wordlessly.

'So have I…' Ron answered in return. There was only a brief still moment, before they leaned in towards the other's mouth, Ron reaching his arms to hold the slender waist, while Draco held the angular face in his hands. This kiss didn't last as long as the previous one, being already out of breath, both pulling apart and almost afraid to let the other go should they disappear.

Draco appraised him with his eyes, before letting out a huge sigh, leaning his forehead against the other's shoulder. He paused for a moment to gather his breath and his thoughts, Ron looking down at him confused.

'We don't have to do this… I know – I know it's only been a few months, and you might not be ready for this… we don't have to…' he began rambling; he wasn't sure what he was rambling about. Draco slowly pushed himself up so he could face Ron eye to eye, seeing the confused expression on his face. 'I just don't want… I don't want there to be any regret or doubt later if anything happens… I –' But Ron quickly silenced him, shaking his head as he brought his hands to cup the delicate, pointed face.

'I need you,' he whispered in near tears. Draco felt all questions melt away at those three words, simply staring at the man with a heated gaze. He slowly pulled away, walking backwards to the bed a few paces behind him; his eyes never left Ron's face. He started undoing the buttons of his shirt, Ron following suit, reaching for the hem of his plain tee and pulling it over his head. Draco had halted a moment as his eyes wandered up and down the half-exposed body. Ron didn't have his high school athlete body anymore, but he figured after being pregnant and having to raise a child on his own, he didn't have the time to work out like he used to.

Draco worked on undoing the rest of his buttons, sliding his shirt off his frail shoulders. Ron watched intently as pale skin was exposed to him; Draco had gotten thinner – his rib cage was only just barely visible, and Ron couldn't help flinch at the kind of pressure the other had been under that would lead to this.

They both simply stood and studied each other, watching each other's body language, noting the changes they could see, wondering what the changes were they couldn't see. Draco was the first to move, sitting down the mattress behind as it creaked softly under his weight; there was a silent debate going between them, before Ron moved to kneel on the bed, turning himself around so he could lie comfortable on his back.

Draco moved cautiously on top of him, hovering over the lankier frame beneath him; he reached his hands to caress through chin length red locks.

'I'm sorry – I just want this to last as long as possible.'

'I know…' There was a small smile. Draco leaned in to capture his lips in a slow, lingering kiss, before pulling away to lovingly kiss the redhead's chin, moving along his jawline till he got to his neck. Ron stifled a soft moan as the blond suckled at the junction between his neck and shoulder. Draco's tongue lingered as he moved down to the other's collarbone – he had seven years' worth of exploring the other's body, and he planned to cover every inch before the night was over.

'I… I love you, Ron…' he muttered into the freckled skin. Ron lifted his head up to look at the man startled. Draco bit his lip as he continued. 'I never stopped loving you; I know you might not believe me, but – I always – I was always thinking of you. I was always worried whether you'd move on or if you'd ever be happy again after what I did to you. I'm sorry for everything – for lying to you, for hurting you and leaving you alone to raise our daughter… I… I can't say it any other way; I love you.' Ron was silent for a moment, before reaching a hand to get the other look at him.

'… I love you too, Draco…' he said hesitantly. For a moment, a shock of disbelief flash across Draco's face, before a tender, tearful smile replaced it. He pushed himself to recapture Ron's lips with his, feeling strong arms hold him around the shoulders, responding just as passionately.

**-Chapter Thirteen End-**


	14. Chapter 14

Sorry this chapter is shorter than usual, but the next part seemed too sudden to attached to this, so enjoy.

**Warnings:** I, in no way, own Harry Potter or the characters I'm about to exploit besides my own. J.K. is the one making the money – not me.

**AU warning:** This is an alternate universe fiction, meaning that this is happening in a world that is not compatible with the books. In this case, it's a non-magic setting, so no signs of magic, etc is used.

**Mature Content Warning:** This fiction may and will contain situations of the sexual/intimate kind as it progresses, and mostly between two guys; if this bothers you there's a lovely invention called "backspace" – use it wisely.

**-Chapter Fourteen-**

Sunlight filtered in through the windows, through shear, light coloured curtains hitting his face as he began to stir awake. Ron flinched slightly against the bright light, mumbling incoherently in his half-sleep state. His hand began to absently wandering across his bed; he eased his eyes open slowly, hazily seeing his hand patting an empty spot. He sat up slowly blinking himself awake as he became more aware that he was alone.

Ron bit his lower lip – of course he'd wake up alone. Draco did have a business to run after all and it'd be selfish of him to want the other man to skip one day of work. The redhead sighed, trying to push away the sudden ache in his chest, glancing over his shoulder to the medium-size digital clock to check the time. The red, blinking digits read 9:45.

'SHIT!' Ron cursed. He fumbled to untangle himself from the sheets, but in his rush all it did was cause him to fall off the bed onto the floor. He winced at the pain from landing on his back, cursing silently in his head before attempting to properly untwine his legs from the sheets. The sound of footsteps treading across the threshold alerted his ears, the man going still as he looked over his shoulder to the door. He prayed that Aidyn wouldn't barge in without knocking; this was the last thing he wanted the child to see.

'Ron? Are you all right?' Draco asked in a panicked tone as he opened the door. He gazed puzzled at the man on the floor, Ron staring back at him in surprise. The two stayed where they were for several minutes, both at a loss of what to say.

'… I fell out of bed…' was all Ron could say. A bemused smile spread across the blond's face.

'I can see that,' he answered. A light tint of red flushed across Ron's nose, quickly freeing his legs from the tangle of his sheets; he pulled one loose to wrap around his waist as he stood up. Draco trekked towards the other man, stopping just a couple feet away from him, arms folded across his chest. Ron cleared his throat, as he looked everywhere but to the man standing in front of him. The blinking numbers of the clocked reminded him why he had fallen out of bed in the first place.

'Shit! Aidyn has school!'

'I took her to school already,' Draco said quickly, stepping in front of the redhead.

'You – you did?' Ron asked baffled. The other nodded his head.

'Yes, she showed me the way,' he answered. Ron made a small "oh" noise, clinging tighter to the sheet around his waist. The two stood in awkward silence, unsure of what to say or do next. Draco unfolded his arms, matching his gaze with Ron's, sapphire blue eyes ducking to the floor.

'You – stayed,' Ron managed out. A tender smile formed on pale, flawless features, Draco reaching a hand out to get the other to look up at him.

'I couldn't just leave after last night – especially after hearing you say you love me.' The flush on Ron's face deepened, turning his eyes away before an odd sort of smile appeared on his face. Draco gazed at him puzzled, but the redhead only shook his head, turning to level the other's stare.

'It still hurts – what you did to me, but… as you said last night,' he hesitated a moment. '… I never did stop loving you; I couldn't.' Slender, frail hands took the board face in a gentle hold, moon-grey clashing with bright blue. Draco pulled the other down for a kiss, Ron willing compiling and accepting the action. A high-pitched ringing startled them both, forcing them to pull apart. Draco glared to where his coat laid in the far corner of the room. He marched over to it, searching through the pockets before pulling out the source of the insistent ringing.

'What do you want, Evelyn?'

'_Where the hell are you? Do you realise what time it is!_' he could hear his secretary scolding from the other side. '_You should've been here hours ago! You have a very important meeting today, and may I remind you – __**your**__ reputation isn't the only one on the line here!_'

'I'm sorry, but I won't be coming in today – I'm with someone much more important.'

'_Draco Malfoy, you get your arse over here, or I swear…_'

'You'll think of something, I'm sure – now if you'll excuse me, I have more important things to attend to.'

'_Draco… don't you __**dare**__ hang up on me…_' Draco quickly pulled the phone away from his ear, clicking the end call button then quickly turned it off. He let out a sigh as he placed it down on the first available surface he could find near him. Evelyn was going to kill him for that, but it was well worth the sacrifice. He turned around to see Ron staring at him bewildered and shocked.

'Did you just…'

'Blow off my head secretary – yes, I did. She'll kill me later for it, but it's worth it,' Draco answered. He walked over to where the other was still standing, bed sheet still hanging around his waist. The blond reached a hand out to brush aside flaming red locks from the freckled face, seeing a bright smile appear on Ron's face. They both leaned in to continue with their kiss that was interrupted; Ron could feel the other man's hand reach down his side for the hand still holding the sheet, gently tugging it away. Ron let him, taking the advantage of having both his hands free to pull the slender frame closer to him.

Draco let out a silent gasp of surprise, pulling away reluctantly; the two men simply stared at each other, a small giggle passing between them. Ron looked him up and down briefly, Draco nodding his head to the wordless question the redhead asked him. Large, board hands reached out for the buttons of the cotton, white shirt, carefully undoing each in a steady, slow motion.

Ron took a moment to appreciate seeing the other's body in bright daylight; Draco was still as pale as he had been when they first met, if not more so now. Ron hesitantly traced the contours of the blond's chest and ribs, biting down on his lower lip. Draco looked at him puzzled.

'What's wrong?'

'I think… I'm going to have to feed you more,' Ron answered as a matter of fact. They both burst out in a small, quiet laugh, Draco tenderly taking the other's hands with his.

'I think I'm looking forward to that,' he said. The air stilled for a moment between as they contented with just gazing into the other's eyes, before craving the other more, leaning in with a kiss, Ron working on getting the rest of Draco's clothes off.

**-Chapter Fourteen End-**


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